Cameron's Relocation
by Raivon
Summary: Cameron finds herself in an alternate future, not knowing how she got there. Sequel to Cameron's Reflection. John/Cameron. Part 3/3.
1. Here One Moment

**Prologue**

A gentle breeze blew her hair across her face, tickling her nose and cheek.

Cameron smiled at the sensation and kept her eyes closed as she listened to the crashing of the waves. She could feel the cold sand beneath her and knew it to be night. They had slept undisturbed for many hours, it seemed. Cameron reached out to touch John, who she knew to be lying inches away. But her hand closed on nothing but sand.

Her eyes snapped open and widened in confusion at John's absence. Cameron sat up and looked around, but aside from her, the beach was unoccupied. She got to her feet and switched her vision to infra-red, but still found no sign of John. She turned her attention to the waves and felt her metaphorical heart stop; what if he went swimming and got pulled out to sea? _No_, she told herself, _John would not be so stupid to swim in the dark, and even if he did, he would call out for me if something went wrong_.

A chilly breeze caused her skin to crawl and Cameron suddenly realised she wasn't wearing any clothes. She found that odd, seeing as Cameron specifically remembered wearing a bikini before she went into standby. Cameron considered her options and decided to go back home, maybe John was waiting for her there, though she wondered why he would abandon her in the first place.

--

Cameron managed to steal some clothes from an abandoned store and made her way back to the Connor residence, every step making less and less sense. The streets were empty and rubbish littered the road and pavements. Bins burned and benches were smashed to splinters, houses were boarded up and stores were stripped of their products. Every now and then, Cameron would detect a presence out of the corner of her eye, but whenever she tried to get a good look, the presence would melt into the shadows.

She finally reached the Connor residence and gave a gasp of surprise: the house was completely desolate. All of the windows were smashed and the front door had been kicked in, the surrounding garden was a total mess, with weeds and thistles slowly engulfing the building. Cameron slowly entered her home and discovered it to be no better on the inside. The wallpaper was peeling off and most, if not all, of the furniture had been destroyed. She spotted several bullet holes in the walls and door frames; something terrible had happened here.

She slowly approached John's room, fearing the worst. It was empty, and bare. It held none of the warmth she remembered; even the bed was nothing more than a torn and dirty mattress. Cameron lowered herself onto the bed and closed her eyes; she had to figure this out, but that wasn't going to be easy. It was like something had swept through the city and changed it all overnight. John was gone, his room was stripped, and the air was cold, despite the fact that just three hours ago she was caught in one the hottest heat waves to ever strike Los Angeles.

The sound of creaking floorboards caught her attention and she quietly crept out of the room to investigate. There was a man in the wrecked living room, his back to her; he seemed to be examining the mess in front of him.

"What are you doing here?"

The man spun around and pointed a gun at her; she had clearly scared the life out of him, his face was hidden in shadow. He just stood there, pistol pointed at her head. Slowly, his hands began to shake and he spoke in an all-too-familiar voice.

"No, that's impossible."

Cameron took a step forwards, her apprehension towards the man having melted upon hearing his voice.

"Derek?"

Derek also took a step forwards, his face revealed by a beam of moonlight. He looked like he'd seen a ghost; disbelief lined every feature.

"It can't be you… It can't."

Cameron was confused; couldn't he see her clearly enough?

"It is me… Cameron. Why don't you recognise me?"

"I must be going mad, God it's finally happened; my sanity's taken a long walk."

Cameron gave him a tiny poke to show she wasn't a figment of his imagination. Derek slowly lowered his gun and shook his head, still unable to fully grasp what he was seeing; she looked no different than the day she…

"Derek, what has happened here? Where is John? Where are Sarah and Ethan?"

"You really don't know, do you?"

Cameron tilted her head quizzically.

"Know what?"

"Three years ago, whilst you and John were on a beach, you suddenly disappeared, never to be seen again."

Cameron's jaw dropped in surprise; she couldn't believe what she was hearing. But then it all made sense; John's absence, her lack of clothes, the change in the city. She had somehow travelled forward to 2011, leaving John and everyone else behind. She felt hot tears run down her face as she imagined how distraught John must have been when she disappeared.

"Please tell me it's not true…"

**Chapter One: Here One Moment…**

"You ever wonder what life will be like in two years time, or three, or even four?"

John rolled onto his side, keeping his head within the shade of the umbrella. His legs were slowly being roasted by the summer heat, a heat that had swept through the whole of California, forcing thousands of people to invest money in the latest air conditioning systems. John, on the other hand, had decided upon a different course of action. He had convinced his beloved Terminator to put on her finest and accompany him to the beach.

She laid, half in shade, half in the sun, upon a towel, mere inches away from him. Cameron wore a red bikini; her silky skin exposed to the harsh sun, yet somehow remained impervious to its blaze. John's eyes lingered on her toes, which she had painted red, and travelled up her perfect legs to her curved hips. His gaze then slowly drifted up her smooth abdomen to her beautiful mounds. John's eyes lingered here for a moment more before moving on to her elegant neck and, finally, her angelic face.

She opened her eyes and gazed into his, her lips parting slightly as she processed a response to his query.

"In four years time, Skynet will have become self-aware and Judgment Day would be upon us. All of this will be gone."

Cameron raised her head slightly to scan the beach and the many people there. She could not help but feel a little remorse at the thought of losing this beautiful landscape. It was such a waste. Cameron was suddenly filled with bitterness towards her creator, and was surprised by the intensity of it. Personally, Cameron always rather pitied Skynet and often wondered how things would be different if its primary directive was not based 

around warfare and violence. Could it learn to understand the things she had experienced? Could it understand love?

A welcome breeze blew Cameron's hair into her face and mouth, John reached over and brushed the strands aside, gently caressing her cheek in the process. Cameron leaned into his touch and smiled softly. John continued to stroke her face, his eyes set with affection as he watched her contentment. This was why he brought her out here; for the peace and the beauty of the world.

He leaned over and placed his lips upon hers briefly before whispering softly in her ear.

"Let's go for a swim."

--

"I told you before: stay away from us. We'll only bring death to your life."

Sarah made to close the door but Charley held it open with a firm hand.

"And I told you; it's not gonna happen. You really think I'm just gonna abandon you and John to fight this thing alone?"

Sarah let out a sigh of frustration; _why couldn't he just listen?_

"You can't help us. Just take your wife and leave. Leave now before you get yourself killed."

Charley gave the door a solid kick, causing Sarah to jump back in surprise.

"I can't do that. My wife left me. She left me, because I told her about you and the future. She said you were crazy, and that I was even crazier to believe you in the first place. We argued about it and she left. So no; I don't have anything else in my life. Just you and John, and I'll be damned before I see you two slip away from me as well."

--

"This is not a good idea."

"C'mon, it'll be fun."

John was waist deep in the sea, waiting patiently for Cameron, who was standing nervously on the beach. No doubt it would be fun, but she feared what would happen if she got too deep; Terminators are not known for their buoyancy.

"What if I sink or get stuck? You won't be able to pull me loose."

John chuckled, his laughter drowned by the crashing of the waves.

"You won't. Trust me, okay."

He held out his hand for hers and she felt her legs moving into the salty water, which slowly engulfed her body, splashing around her navel. She took John's hand and felt her feet sink a little but not too much. John smiled and gently led her further out until only their shoulders and heads were above the water.

"You okay?"

She nodded and traced her hands through the water, finding John's waist a few meters away. Cameron drew him close and they kissed, both tasting the salt on each other's lips. They remained like this for several long moments before John did something rather unexpected: he scooped up her legs and brought them to the 

surface. Cameron cried out in surprise and was shocked to find that her head hadn't submerged. Somehow her body had managed to remain afloat; she lay on the water's surface like a bed. She carefully turned her head towards John, afraid that any overt movements would upset her balance.

"How…?"

"You're not terribly heavy, ya know. I can lift you all by myself. Besides, the water allows for a little more ease in that regard. Just lay still and don't make any sudden moves… I've got you."

John held her from beneath, one hand on her back, the other supporting her legs. It was sufficient enough to allow her the sensation of floating. She closed her eyes and marvelled at how relaxing it felt, she smiled and leaned her head back, her hair touching the water.

"How does it feel?"

Cameron kept her eyes closed and let out a small moan of contentment.

"I couldn't say. I've never been to heaven before."

--

"You want mustard on that?"

"Uh, no thanks, what do I owe you?"

"That'll be a dollar forty-nine."

Derek handed over the money in exchange for the hot dog.

"Keep the change."

The vendor gave a non-verbal response as Derek left the stall and leaned against a nearby wall, taking a bite out of his hot dog. An African-American in a business suit came around the corner and also purchased the sausage snack. Judging by their interaction, Derek deduced that the "suit" and the vendor knew each other.

The "suit" paid for his meal and turned around, spotting Derek a few feet away. Their eyes locked as both recognised the other. Derek froze, his mouth hanging open as he prepared to take a bite. Agent James Ellison also froze, his hot dog held at his side. They continued to eye each other for a few moments before Ellison regained his composure and, dropping the sausage, drew his gun.

"Freeze!"

_Crap_, thought Derek, as he also let his dog fall to the floor and bolted into the crowd, Ellison not far behind.

--

They spent countless hours in the sea; one minute they would be talking, then they would be kissing, then one would playfully splash the other, resulting in a contest to see who would get the most soaked. They were out there for so long that they didn't notice the sun as it slowly began to set. Eventually, however, they returned to the beach and fell, exhausted, onto their towels. John looked around, seeing no one; they were the only people still there.

Cameron bit her lip playfully and gave John a small wink, prompting him to lean over and press their lips together. They held each other close, their hands exploring each other's bodies. John gently slid his hand across her marble belly and beyond. Cameron gasped as pleasure flared throughout her body, causing her mind to race as all her systems presented countless reports of sensory data. She closed her eyes and moaned louder, the waves crashing in time with her ripples of pure ecstasy.

--

A quick flash of white light, followed by a whooshing sound, was all that heralded the arrival of Skynet's most advanced creation to date. Unlike previous models, this machine possessed no biological covering, and stalked silently towards the sleeping couple. The machine took a moment to analyse them, taking note of their bodily positions, and decided that it needed to move them slightly.

The machine carefully prised the girl away from her mate, careful not to trigger a reboot of her systems. Once she was extricated from the boy, the machine wrapped its mechanical hand around the girl's arm and started the displacement sequence.

John stirred slightly, but did not awaken, never noticing the flash of white light as his lover was stolen from him.


	2. Not My Future

**Chapter Two: Not My Future**

"But… that's impossible. We were on a beach. I couldn't just…"

Cameron looked around the house, desperately searching for an answer, but found none. All evidence pointed towards a time displacement, but that was most unlikely as there were no TDEs in the area. Besides that; she would've needed to be within a time sphere, and she seriously doubted that one could be concealed on a beach.

Confusion and hopelessness threatened to override her systems again. She began pacing erratically, unable to grasp what had happened. Everything had gone so wrong.

"I don't understand… I don't understand… Oh… John… Please tell me he's safe…"

Derek holstered his weapon and regarded her with some measure of disbelief; he still found it hard to believe that she was here, after all these years. He couldn't say why, but Derek felt the need to comfort the distressed machine.

"John is alive, if that's what you mean, can't say he'd be particularly happy to see you though."

Cameron stopped her pacing and looked at Derek with an expression of incredulity.

"Why? Why wouldn't he be happy to see me?"

"Because you abandoned him!"

Cameron began shaking her head, tears brimming in her eyes as Derek continued.

"He woke up and you were gone. I've never seen a guy so distraught. And when he finally realised you weren't coming back… he snapped. A part of him died. You broke his heart."

Cameron fell to her knees, unable to handle the reality of what she was hearing. Every atom of her being screamed in pain and torment; she had failed him; she had failed John, in every possible way… again. He needed her, but she wasn't there, she was no where. Three years. Three years he had been alone.

"No… No I… I have to see him… Please… take me to him… please…"

Derek regarded her for a few agonising moments before nodding in agreement.

"He'll probably wish you stayed gone… but he'll still want to see you. Who knows, he might even kill you."

Cameron slowly got to her feet and wiped the tears from her face, smiling a sad smile of gratitude. Derek merely shrugged and headed for the door, but as soon as he left the building Derek suddenly stumbled back inside, three bullet wounds in his chest. Cameron watched in dismay as he fell to the floor, twitching and coughing up blood. She knelt by his side, assessing the damage, but there was nothing she could do, and he died seconds later.

"Derek…"

She wanted to ask him how to find John, but knew that he was in no condition to answer. A harsh voice called out from outside, magnified by a megaphone.

"Come out with your hands up! If you resist, we will shoot you! Come out, NOW!!"

Cameron felt every bolt in her body shake with pure rage and despair; too much had happened to her in the last hour for her to feel any different. She took Derek's gun and thumbed the hammer back… then she did as she was told.

--

"Please… No!"

Machines do not feel remorse or mercy, not when their whole life has been snatched away from them. Cameron pulled the trigger, killing the last of the Anti-terrorist unit, despite his pleas. Her grip on the empty gun loosened, allowing the weapon to clatter to the floor.

_Human Casualties: 10.0... All subjects terminated….. Threat neutralized….._

Cameron let out a deep breath, though she never needed to breath, and began the long search for her beloved. She walked down many roads, once again catching movement in her peripheral; someone was following her. Cameron pretended to be ignorant, waiting for her stalker to make a move, she desperately needed someone or thing to focus her anger on.

Her wish was granted when a timid teen girl suddenly jumped out in front of her. Cameron grabbed the girl and pinned her against the nearest wall. The girl screamed in terror, but did not fight back.

"Please don't hurt me. I just wanted to talk is all."

Cameron let the girl down and glared at her.

"Well, I have no interest in speaking with you. So leave me alone."

The girl dropped to her knees and grasped Cameron's trousers.

"Please… I need… I'll do anything you want, so long as you can get me… Please…"

Cameron placed her hand on the girl's face and detected the tell-tale signs of drug addiction; the girl was in withdrawal. Cameron was suddenly struck by an idea; _perhaps this girl might yet prove useful_, she thought.

"You answer my questions… and I give you what you crave. Deal?"

The girl nodded enthusiastically, like a dog begging for a bone.

"What happened here? What has happened to Los Angeles?"

"But, how can you not know?"

Cameron took a step closer, towering over the youth.

"Answer the question!"

The girl gave an audible gulp and seemed to shrink slightly.

"It… It began th-three years ago… A man told everyone that… the world was going to end… and that… machines were going to… kill us all."

"And the whole world believed this?"

"Umm, hmm, he had ev-evidence; a piece… of the machines… He used it to… Everyone believed him… the world became… so dark… so very, very dark… and we… we had to hide."

"Hide? Hide from whom?"

The girl looked to her left and right, as if she were afraid that someone might be listening to their conversation. She leaned forward and spoke in a small whisper.

"The Connor man!"

Cameron stared at the girl with such intensity that she expected her to burst into flames.

"The Connor man? What do you know about him?"

"H-He is the one who brings the robots… everyone hates him… everyone wants him dead. The cops… the mobs… the mafia… even the bureau… They will never find him though… he has evil men working with him…"

Cameron's eyes lit up with interest; _John was being hunted by the world, they believed him responsible for the machines._

"Evil men?"

"Y-Yes, some are robots… people say… One is very; very nasty… he does terrible things to people… We call him… the Dragon!"

_Searching Archives…. Dragon: mythological serpent commonly portrayed in myths as a powerful winged beast._

"This… 'Dragon', who is he exactly? And why do you call him that?"

"No one knows his real name… But he spits fire at people… He burns them to the bones… and his eyes… red they say… the eyes of the devil…"

Cameron suddenly felt slightly better; this 'Dragon' the girl was referring to had to be none other than Ethan, it fit his modus operandi. _At least my brother is still alive_, she thought.

"Where are the cops? Why are the streets like this?"

"The city is… no longer under their control… The mafia… took over… Just gangs and cults on the streets now."

"But I encountered some cops, heavily armed, lots of guns…"

"Y-Yeah, the bureau, they only hunt Connor and his evil men… they never help us…"

Cameron nodded slowly; John was being held responsible for the machines. They believed him to be behind it all. _John, you must be so lonely…_

"How… how can I find Connor?"

The girl's eyes widened to the size of saucers.

"You can't… he is hidden… always hidden… deep in the city… no one can be sure where… but deep in the city."

Cameron had heard enough; John was somewhere in the heart of Los Angeles, and that's where she'll start. She turned around and began walking down the road, but was waylaid by the girl.

"No! No! NO!! You promised me… You promised me…"

Cameron just stared back, her face completely devoid of emotion. Not because she couldn't feel, just that she was reserved at the moment. Her icy demeanour did nothing to reassure the girl.

"I lied."

It was a simple admission, but one that provoked a crazed response from the girl, who hurled herself at Cameron, trying to claw out her eyes. Cameron grabbed the girl by the throat and applied a small amount of pressure before hearing a tiny crack. The girl dropped to the floor, completely immobile. Cameron felt a flicker 

of regret, but then she considered that, given the girl's addiction, she would only have died slowly and painfully at a later date. Cameron put the thought aside and continued down the street.

--

Her long walk eventually brought her to a row of shops she recognised, one of them having previously sold firearms. A brief scan confirmed the presence of weaponry, despite obvious signs of looting. She entered the store and found clothes that were better suited for her current situation and decided to gear up. Cameron took off the plain shirt and trousers she'd recovered before and slipped the ragged shoes off her feet.

She then cherry-picked the best clothes she could find and gathered them all together. Cameron started with the underwear, and as she slowly slipped into them her thoughts drifted back to John and the day at the beach. It had been such a beautiful day, and it had ended beautifully, for both of them. But now this; this nightmare, this terrible disaster, was all that she knew.

She had been torn out of his arms and separated by three years, wherein the world fell into chaos and John had become public enemy number one. She cried silently as she fastened her brassier and then covered her upper body with a grey tank top, like the kind that Sarah used to wear. _Sarah. Whatever happened to her?_ Derek made no mention of her to Cameron. _Had John lost his mother? She hoped not. Such grief would crush his already broken heart. _

Cameron placed each leg into her black tracksuit and pulled it up to her waist. She then placed her arms through the sleeves and zipped it up to just beneath her chest. Cameron sat down and put warm socks onto her feet, her red toe nail polish bringing painful memories to the surface, before encasing them in steel toe-capped boots. Once her boots were securely fastened, Cameron stood up and faced the life-sized mirror. She looked exactly as she did during her tenure in the Resistance, and couldn't help but think it appropriate that she had come full circle.

She rummaged through the weapons, though there was little left for her to scavenge, she did find two Desert Eagles, both with a full magazine. She also found a particularly vicious-looking combat knife, which she decided to bring along for close encounters. Her final discovery was a pump action shotgun but could only find ten shells for it. Cameron placed both pistols in holsters on each leg and sheathed the knife on the back of her belt.

She stepped out of the store and walked into the middle of the street. Cameron scanned the environment around her and pumped the shotgun, loading a shell into its chamber.

_I will find you John. I promise you. I will find you._


	3. Gone The Next

**Chapter Three: …Gone The Next**

"_Promise me you'll never leave me."_

"_I promise."_

John burst through the front door and took a moment to get his breath back before storming to his bedroom. She wasn't there. He rushed to her room, but she wasn't there either. Desperate, John threw open his mom's door and couldn't help but freeze for a moment as he took in the scene before him. Charley sat up and narrowed his eyes slightly at John, who seemed to have become a statue. Sarah also sat up, making sure she was adequately covered, and glared at the nonplussed teen.

"You never heard of knocking before entering?"

John croaked slightly before turning around and closing his eyes, but remaining where he stood.

"I uh… I didn't… I thought Cameron might be in here."

Sarah began gathering her clothes, slightly confused by his statement.

"Why would Cameron be in my room? Wasn't she with you at the beach?"

John kept his eyes shut tight and increased his grip on the door knob.

"She was, but when I woke up she was… she was gone."

"Gone? You sure she didn't just disappear for a few minutes to get an ice cream cone or something?"

John gritted his teeth; he wasn't in the mood for Sarah's quips.

"I waited for half an hour, and then I searched the entire beach. If she was there I would've found her."

Sarah finished dressing, as did Charley, and got out of bed.

"Did you try calling her on her cell phone?"

John finally turned around and faced Sarah, his arms crossed in annoyance.

"Of course I did. Used up all my credit trying to reach her."

Sarah was starting to get a little concerned, not for Cameron; she could look after herself, but for John. He looked utterly forlorn; his entire body was covered in sweat and still had sand in his hair.

"Does she do this often, disappearing I mean?"

John turned to Charley and rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Yeah, she gets a real kick out of torturing me. It's her favourite past-time."

John's sarcasm was obvious, and just a little bit venomous. Though he knew little about John and Cameron's relationship, Charley could see that the robot meant a great deal to his son-in-law. Sarah sat at her dressing table and ran a comb through her hair, watching John in the mirror.

"Have you spoken to Jas- Ethan? Maybe he's seen her."

"Seen who?"

John jumped out of his skin and spun around to see Ethan standing there, a look of mild curiosity on those hauntingly charming features. Ethan, as he called himself nowadays, used to be an I-950 called Jason until he was murdered by Cameron's insane brother, Kevin. Jason did not die, however, and managed to invade Kevin's chip, slowly taking over and eventually erasing Kevin's persona.

Though Kevin was gone, parts of his personality had imprinted onto Jason. Ever since then, Jason had started to exhibit mild psychopathic tendencies. Upon realising this; Jason decided that he was no longer the person he once was, and changed his name and demeanour. John could not forget the night Kevin tied him up and tortured him, and every time he looked at Ethan John was reminded of that terrible memory.

But none of that mattered right now. He needed to find Cameron, and he would need Ethan's help in order to do so.

"What am I missing here? Who am I supposed to have seen?"

"Cameron… she's disappeared. I was hoping you might've seen her."

Ethan frowned slightly and shook his head.

"I haven't seen her since yesterday."

He smiled slightly as he accessed his memory files of that day.

"She wanted to know if her bikini was, and I quote, tight."

John couldn't help but blush slightly and caught the look of slight confusion on Charley's face as he slowly put two and two together. Ethan leaned back to look down the corridor, seeing no one.

"When was the last time you saw her? You two went to the beach, right?"

John ran his hand through his hair and sighed in frustration.

"Yes, we spent the night. But when I woke up this morning she was gone, and before you ask; yes, I have searched everywhere and I have tried calling her."

Ethan put his hands up in mock surrender and took a step back.

"Okay, okay. Let's just put our heads together and try to figure out what might've happened to her."

--

_God bless America and its abundance of mall carts_, thought Derek, as Ellison collided with an unlucky shopper. Derek hurtled down the escalator, laughing to himself as Ellison extricated himself and followed suite. Despite facing possible incarceration and/or death, Derek couldn't help but enjoy running from the FBI agent. It had been too long since he'd been in a good old fashioned race for his life.

Ellison reached the bottom of the escalator and aimed his gun, causing a dozen shoppers to scream and duck, but not enough to give him a clean shot at Derek. Ellison growled in frustration and continued the pursuit, feeling his muscles beginning to ache; this was supposed to be his day off.

"Move! Move!"

He barged past several ignorant customers, earning snide rebukes from a number of them, and tore through the mall. Derek raced through a group of six year-olds who were gathered around a man in a dinosaur outfit. The dinosaur hopped out in front of him and held out his hands.

"Hoy, hoy, what's the rush big fella, hehe?"

"Get out of my way."

Derek barged past the entertainer, knocking him aside. The dinosaur staggered and gave Derek the finger, abandoning his bouncy demeanour.

"Hey, I'm trying to work here you…"

The dinosaur suddenly fell to the floor as Ellison tripped on his tail, landing in a heap next to him.

"Argh, what now? I'm trying to earn a living here man!"

Ellison got to his feet, looking back at the dinosaur.

"Try getting a real job you idiot!"

Derek managed to slip into an elevator and waved as he ascended to the top level. Ellison, though tired, was not going to give up that easily, and sprinted up three escalators, desperately trying to reach the top before his quarry.

_Damn he's persistent_, thought Derek, as he watched the agent shoulder past numerous shoppers. The glass door opened and Derek threw himself towards the exit, elbowing several bystanders. He raced past a bicycle store, determined to get out into the open and throw the agent off of his trail. Derek heard a shrill ringing sound and looked back in time to see Ellison riding a pink bike towards him. He couldn't help but laugh before feeling the butt of Ellison's gun, and then everything went dark.

--

_Scanning… Scan complete: 0.0 submerged bodies in this sector…_

"So much for that theory… Damn it, I was kinda hoping she'd drowned..."

John looked at Ethan with disbelief, prompting the cyborg to clarify his previous statement.

"No, I meant in regards to finding her… If she'd gone for a swim and gotten stuck somehow, we'd be able to locate and rescue her."

John nodded slowly and returned his gaze to the water, hoping to see her bobbing around amongst the corals. Sarah and Charley joined them on the rocks, both looking apprehensive, which could only mean one thing.

"No sign of her?"

Sarah nodded and Charley scratched the back of his head nervously.

"We searched everywhere. She's… She's not here Johnny."

John took a steadying breath and was suddenly struck by an idea.

"Wait! Didn't you say once that Kevin could always locate Cameron, that he had some kind of ESP? Couldn't you use that to find her?"

Ethan considered for a moment before answering.

"Yes… but it was an anomaly of sorts. I can't just snap my fingers and instantly know where she is. But if I were to somehow integrate myself into the city's surveillance systems, I might be able to find her."

John let out a breath of relief. _Why hadn't I thought of that before?_

"We can plug your chip into the grid like we did with Cam and the traffic light. C'mon, let's go."

Sarah opened her mouth to protest, but seeing the look of resolve on John's face, she decided to just follow suite.

--

Derek's vision slowly returned to him, but remained blurry. He was sitting on a wooden chair, his arms cuffed behind his back. Derek shook his head, trying to clear his vision, but was met with a painful throb from where Ellison had pistol-whipped him. Regardless, he managed to ascertain that he was not in a cell, but was in fact, in a house.

Ellison came into the room and sat down opposite Derek, his gun resting on the arm of the chair.

"How's your head?"

Derek grunted and leaned his head back, teeth gritted against the pain.

"Never better, not that you'd care."

Ellison chuckled and took a small sip of tea before leaning forwards, his elbows resting on his knees.

"Do you know why you're here?"

Derek scanned the room, testing the strength of the cuffs; looking for possible escape routes should he manage to get free.

"That's the question isn't it? Did God send us here to suffer or were we always meant to be here?"

Ellison frowned at Derek's answer; he hadn't hit him that hard.

"That's not what I meant. Do you know why you're here instead of jail?"

Derek ceased his struggling and looked at Ellison directly.

"I'm guessing you're afraid that, if you take me in, they'll put me on a secure vehicle where I'll be rescued again."

Ellison couldn't help but laugh and took another sip of his tea.

"True, true, but I also want to talk to you about certain things that would otherwise be considered unrelated to your crimes. Does the name Skynet mean anything to you?"

Derek simply stared, unwilling to answer the question.

"Okay, what about Judgment Day? Nuclear apocalypse? Machines versus humans in an epic battle for survival? Any of this sound familiar? What about robots from the future? Soldiers from the future? Does the name Kyle Reese ring any bells?"

Derek flushed and moved forward, making the chair scrape across the floor slightly.

"What the hell do you know about Kyle?"

Ellison was taken aback by Derek's outburst; obviously he'd struck a nerve.

"Only what I've read from Sarah Connor's case file: he was a soldier from the future, sent back to protect Connor from a machine he called the Terminator. He apparently died trying to fight the machine. Do you know this man?"

Derek leaned back and stared at the floor, avoiding eye contact.

"What does it matter? He's dead."

"It matters to me. Because, you see, I recently had an encounter with one of these so-called Terminators."

Derek looked up and glared at him.

"If you had an encounter with a metal, you wouldn't be sitting here sipping tea, your brains would be splattered all over the floor."

"And they very nearly were, but it let me live, for reasons I have yet to understand."

"Good for you, maybe next time you won't be so lucky."

"Maybe… C'mon man; tell me what it's all about. Tell why these machines are here. Tell me what they want from us."

"Aside from the destruction of all mankind?"

Ellison nodded expectantly. Derek sighed and figured he might as well start from the beginning.

"Alright, look; in several years time some guy is gonna create a machine that declares war on mankind. All of this will be bombed back to the Stone Age, and those left over will be forced to fight a long and bloody war against the machines. Somewhere down the line, Skynet developed time travel and started sending machines back in time to ensure its creation. Some of them stockpile supplies; others hunt down and kill people."

"So there's more than one of them out there."

"A lot more, some of them are very good at blending in with other people."

"Sarah said that they were after her son, why is that?"

"Because he's the guy who leads us to victory. He's the guy who taught humanity how to smash those metal fuckers all to hell."

Ellison sat forward slightly.

"They are here because of him? He's the reason the machines have killed all these people?"

"What? No!"

"But you said yourself; they came back to kill him. If he was dead, they wouldn't need to come through time and do any of this."

"Of course not, cos' if John was dead we'd be royally screwed. And Skynet would just wipe us all out."

Ellison placed his fingers together and leaned back, mumbling scripture to himself.

"And I heard as it were, the noise of thunder. And I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, come and see. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him."

Derek stared at him, wandering what the agent was getting at.

"There meant to be some point behind that drabble?"

"I've considered that passage many times since my encounter with the machine. And all the while, I think to myself; how can I stop these robots from destroying the here and now? And I think I finally have the answer."

Derek didn't like what Ellison was suggesting. There was something in his eyes that spoke of darkness to come; this was a man who had a plan of his own, but the nature of that plan remained murky at best.

--

John carefully reinserted Ethan's violet chip, giving it a slight twist before screwing the shock dampener back in place. He and Sarah had taken Ethan's CPU and broken into city hall where they inserted Ethan into the surveillance systems. It only took him twenty seconds to search every corner of Los Angeles for Cameron, which John thought was good as it implied that Ethan had found her.

Ethan twitched slightly and blinked, taking a moment to run a short diagnostic. John stood up impatiently and began pacing the length of Cameron's bedroom, stopping when Ethan suddenly sat up.

"Well? Where is she?"

Ethan just sighed and stared at the floor, unable to look John in the eye. This was all John needed to become worried again, but though the answer was obvious, he still asked.

"Ethan! What is it? Where is she?"

"John… She's no where."

"What? No where… how can she be… Wait… No!"

John's greatest fear struck him like a speeding truck. Ethan, having guessed what John was thinking, got to his feet and placed his hands on John's shoulders.

"She's not dead. Look at me! If she died I'd know instantly. She's still alive. But she's not in Los Angeles, she's not in California, and she's not on this continent."

John looked up at Ethan, his face a mix of confusion and hope.

"But… where is she then?"

Ethan sighed again.

"I don't know. But it's safe to say that she's not anywhere in the United States. I'm sorry, John. She could be anywhere in the world by now. We… may never find her."

John shook his head in disbelief as the truth sank in.

_Cam, where are you?_


	4. Lamb to the Slaughter

**Chapter Four: Lamb to the Slaughter**

As total darkness descended upon the city chaos took to the plate like a ravening pack of wolves.

The once peaceful streets of Los Angeles were now filled with violence as rival gangs clashed and blood was spilled. An endless war to claim what little remained. Amongst the conflict strode Cameron, shotgun at the ready, purposely ignoring the struggles on both sides. She walked the line, stopping only when attacked, responding with lethal efficiency. She had a mission to complete, and the bitter quarrels of desperate humans meant nothing to her, not when her lover was out there somewhere… alone.

Though she had no idea where John was exactly, her sources told her that he could be found deep within the city. But as Cameron quickly discovered; the deeper the rabbit hole goes, the more likely it is to suddenly collapse around you. This became very much a reality when a petrol bomb exploded at her feet, almost setting her alight. She backed away from the liquid flame and trained her weapon to her right, finding the one responsible.

She squeezed the trigger and smiled sinisterly as the thug's head exploded like a tomato, spilling its ketchup all over the floor. He was not alone; however, as a dozen more gangsters arrived in their rustic truck, armed with a variety of weapons, most of them primitive. Cameron continued onwards, not breaking a stride as one them charged her, bringing his hockey stick down upon her head. Cameron simply drove the butt of her weapon into his face, crushing bone and brain alike.

Two more came at her on both sides, one armed with a machete, the other carrying a modified fire axe. The first tried to slice her head off, whilst the second brought his axe down upon her skull. Cameron ducked and stepped backwards with perfect timing, the first thug cutting the second in half as his axe struck the first's head. Both fell to the floor and Cameron continued onwards, cocking her shotgun in preparation for the inevitable ambush.

As she walked past a burning car, another gangster came up behind her, raising his crude weapon for the kill. Cameron simply placed the shotgun on her left shoulder and fired, blowing the idiot's head off; _no one can sneak up on a Terminator_, Cameron mused. As she reached the gangster's abandoned vehicle, Cameron paused. By her calculations, there were still six gangsters left, so where were they?

Her question was answered almost instantly as all six launched themselves at her in almost perfect unison. They moved too fast for her to get a weapon lock, some of them even back-flipped over her; these threats were well-schooled. Cameron slung the shotgun over her shoulder and fixed her sights on one particular acrobat; the slowest one.

He charged her with a spinning kick, which she dodged with relative ease followed by a sharp blow to the spinal column, killing him instantly. The others paused for a moment before attacking with renewed vigour, the opposite to what Cameron had hoped for. Their rage served them well, but it also made them sloppy. Though some were able to get in a punch or kick here and there, none lived past their second strike, all except the leader.

He stood amongst the broken bodies of his friends, facing this impossible girl with a look of pure hatred while she remained blank and emotionless. He took a few deep breaths before charging her, jumping half the distance, leg stretched towards her face. Cameron simply smiled and mimicked a spinning kick, catching him mid-leap. The acrobat fell onto a jagged piece of metal that penetrated his heart, killing him instantly.

Cameron took a moment to admire her handiwork, before turning her attention back to finding John. A few seconds later, however, a lone African-American stepped out in front of her, applauding Cameron's defeat of the gangsters. Cameron raised her shotgun, but he held up his hands in surrender.

"Do not be alarmed, I am not here to hurt you, I only wish to talk; if you'll permit it."

Cameron slowly lowered her weapon, detecting the sincerity in his voice. Taking this as a sign; the man continued.

"You are a remarkable young woman. Are you aware that those six men have evaded death for many months now? By no means a small feat, especially in these streets, but you…"

The man chuckled and took a hesitant step forwards, Cameron gripped the shotgun tighter, but did not raise it.

"…you killed them all in less than a minute. I have never seen such skill. You would be a valuable asset to our little community, if you would accompany me…"

Cameron raised the shotgun, aiming for his chest.

"I'm not going anywhere with you."

The man took a step back and raised his hands once more.

"I have no desire to make you do anything; I would not be so foolish…"

"Then step aside and let me pass, I have a mission to complete."

The man frowned in confusion and tilted his head back slightly.

"A mission? No one has a mission these days. Except if you are working for the Bureau."

"I am not associated with any branch of government. My task is my own, one which you are currently impeding."

The man recognised the threat and stepped aside, allowing her to pass him.

"What, may I ask, does this mission of yours entail? Is it something I could help with?"

Cameron continued walking, not bothering to look back as she spoke.

"I doubt it. I'm looking for John…"

"…Connor?"

Cameron froze and slowly turned around to face the man.

"What do you know of him?"

"I know how to get into contact with him, if that is what you desire."

Cameron took an eager step towards him.

"Very much, can you take me to him?"

"Me? No. But my master has the means to contact him. Follow me and I will take you to him."

The smile faded from Cameron's face as comprehension dawned on her. She cocked the shotgun, causing the man to take another step back.

"If you intend to ambush me or commit any such action, keep in mind that I'm the one with the 12-gauge."

The man laughed nervously and once again raised his hands.

"I assure you, you have nothing to fear."

Cameron slung the shotgun on her shoulder and eyed the man suspiciously.

"I'll be the judge of that, now lead on, I haven't got all day."

--

The man, who eventually introduced himself as Balthazar, led Cameron to an underground refuge, packed with desperate citizens. Cameron could not help but feel a twinge of sympathy for these people, especially when she noticed her one-time monosyllabic friend, Chola, amongst them. The Latina lookout's jaw dropped as she recognised Cameron, but like always, she said not a word. Cameron gave her a small nod before increasing her stride to cover the gulf between her and Balthazar.

She was eventually brought to the "antechamber" where she was told to wait. Balthazar disappeared, leaving her alone in the empty room. The only piece of furniture present was an old chair positioned at the centre-back of the room, like a throne. Cameron slowly approached the chair and, with mild curiosity, sat down upon it, allowing herself to relax for a moment.

She closed her eyes and let her thoughts drift back to John. She couldn't imagine how hard it had been for him to wake up and find her gone like that, to not see her for three years. Derek had told her that she broke John's heart, and even implied that John hated her for leaving. Though such an accusation would be unfair, Cameron could not help but feel responsible for her absence. It was illogical, she wasn't to blame, but still she felt like she deserved punishment.

Then she remembered something Ethan had once told her:

"_You see; kids are like dogs. You beat them for long enough and they start thinking they did something to deserve it."_

Though Cameron considered herself as neither a child nor a canine, she could not deny the similarities to how she felt. _But then again_, she thought, _I am little more than a child. I have only existed for two years three months and nine days. But on second thought; time has no meaning for a machine. Perhaps I am finally starting to see myself as more human, like John said I would._

"I hope I'm not interrupting your meditation, but that is my seat you have commandeered."

Cameron's eyes snapped open to see a tall man wearing a leather coat and bearing many chains around his neck. Each one of his fingers bore a ring of varying design, but most had skull insignias. The man raised his hand as a clear indication for her to vacate his throne.

"If it's not too much trouble, miss…"

"Cameron."

Cameron stood up and stepped away, allowing the man to sit down. Once comfortable, he linked his fingers together and eyed her closely.

"Balthazar tells me that you fought and killed the Leaping Tigers. I had imagined you as a muscle-bound six-footer; imagine my surprise when I discovered you were a petite adolescent, and such a pretty one at that."

Cameron tilted her head to one side, but said nothing. The man nodded to himself and shifted his position.

"Not much of a speaker, are you? I know a girl like that."

"So do I. We've been acquainted."

"Ah, so speech is not entirely lost to you. I'll get straight to business then; Balthazar tells me that you wish to meet Connor. While I am one of the few to have contact with him, I have not been so fortunate to have ever met him in person. Nobody does. So your chances are rather mute, unless he's looking for a bride…"

His eyes lingered on her curves for a long moment.

"…and who wouldn't be tempted?"

He placed his hands on the arms of his chair, ready to stand up, but Cameron placed a hand on the grip of her knife and gave him a steely look.

"The last man to try to take advantage of me ended up floating upside-down in a river bed; I doubt you'd be so stupid as to make the same mistake."

The man remained seated and glared at her, but not without the smallest trace of fear.

"It is unwise to threaten me in my own home, little girl."

"It is unwise to oppose me in any fashion, old man."

The man flushed and gritted his teeth as he leaned forward.

"Remember; you came to me for help. And I fail to see why I should oblige."

"You'll oblige because I say so."

The man slammed his fists upon the arm rests, his face full of fury.

"How dare you walk into my house and demand favours in exchange for nothing! You petulant child, this is my kingdom, I make the rules here! Now show me some respect!"

Cameron was unfazed by his outburst and took a few steps towards the throne, towering over him.

"Respect? You've yet to earn any in my eyes. And you're what? A petty crook with delusions of standing? Sad little king of a sad little hill."

Her words cut into him, so below the belt that he couldn't summon any response besides that which he knew she wanted to hear.

"W-What do you want?"

"I want you to send word to John and tell him: Cameron wishes to see him. He'll know what you mean."

"Of course, I'll g-get right on it."

Cameron smiled sweetly and took several steps back.

"That's very tight of you. Please don't let me hold you up; I'm sure you'd like to get on that right away."

--

"The message has been sent, he's sending an emissary to collect you, who'll arrive in less than an hour."

Cameron smiled at the little king, a genuine smile this time, as she felt overjoyed that John had replied so promptly.

"Thank you, and I apologize for my earlier comment, it was rude of me."

The little king smiled nervously.

"Don't mention it. But if you're really feeling repentant, then perhaps you might honour me in-…"

The lil' king was cut short by a loud explosion from somewhere in the distance, followed by screaming and the sound of gunfire.

"What in the hell?"

He popped his head out of the room, only to receive a bullet in between his eyes. Cameron sighed in anger and frustration; _why does it never go smoothly_, she wondered. Striding out of the antechamber, shotgun at the ready, Cameron spotted the source of the disturbance; a group of fanatics in clerical robes, each armed with automatic weapons and gunning down everyone in sight.

Cameron cocked the weapon and immediately blasted the head off of the nearest cultist, earning her the ire of his fellow anarchists, who trained their weapons on her and unleashed a storm of bullets. Cameron dived behind a nearby barrel, only receiving a few wounds on her side. They continued to fire, laughing maniacally as their bullets began to shred the barrel, forcing Cameron to dive for more cover, choosing an overturned taxi.

Once her position was secure, she popped her head out and counted the fanatics; seven of them. She then ducked down and loaded three more shells into the shotgun, bringing an exact total of seven shots; _very convenient_, she thought. Cameron popped out of her hiding place again and, with a precision that no human could match, blew the heads off of three more cultists before having to duck again.

The remaining four cried out in anger, advancing towards her position, constantly riddling the taxi with a seemingly unlimited supply of bullets. Cameron then took out three more, leaving a single survivor who was unlucky enough to finally run out of bullets. She cocked the gun one last time and approached the cowering fanatic, eyeing him for a second before splattering his brains all over the place.

Satisfied, Cameron dropped the now-useless shotgun to the floor and was about to draw her Desert Eagles when she was suddenly struck by two thousand volts, sending her into that dark nothingness.

--

_Rebooting_

_00101100100111011010110010011100_

_11010011011000100101001101100011_

_00101100100111011010110010011100_

_11010011011000100101001101100011_

_All systems fully functioning. _

Cameron awoke to see an aged man with silver hair smiling down at her, a manic gleam in his eyes.

"Hello, little one, my name is Silberman. And I will be your saviour this day."

"Oh, thank you for explaining."

She tried to move, but found her arms and legs were bound by thick steel restraints. Cameron was chained to a table, placed next to an open furnace of some sort. All around her stood the robed cultists who attacked the settlement. She looked up at Silberman, realising that his use of the word "saviour" did not carry the same meaning that it initially implied.

"Who are you people and what are going to do to me?"

"We are the Knights of Walpurgis, and we intend to cleanse you of your taint."

"My taint?"

"Why, yes, you are one of them; a demon sent back through time to bring forth the apocalypse."

The furnace suddenly roared to life, the tell-tale sparks of thermite mixing with the flames. Cameron struggled against her restraints, desperately trying to get free. But she couldn't, she was trapped, and she could feel the fire approaching as several cultists slid her table towards the furnace, ready to "cleanse her".

Cameron closed her eyes and prayed to every deity she knew, chief among these was a single name:

_Help me please… John. _


	5. The Fault of None

**Chapter Five: The Fault of None**

"_John? What are you afraid of?"_

"_Nothing, I'll never be afraid of anything again."_

John awoke with a start, his sheets drenched with sweat, and his mind racing as he remembered the dream that woke him. Except it wasn't a dream, it was a memory, one of the happiest memories in his entire life: their first kiss. But it no longer brought him joy; this memory had been dragged screaming into his nightmares, a mocking reminder of what he had lost and may never possess again.

John buried his face in his hands and wept for what seemed like an eternity. By the time he finished, the sun had risen and Sarah had begun moving about the house, anxiously waiting for John to get out of bed. But he wouldn't, he couldn't, he could still smell her sweet odour on his mattress and, if he closed his eyes, he could almost feel her lying next to him.

He stroked the mattress, fooling himself into believing that it was her warmth he could feel and not that of the sun as it shone through the window. John laid his head upon the warm patch, continuing to caress the sheets, trying desperately to absorb her non-existent presence.

Sarah gently knocked on the door, received no reply, and so slowly turned the handle and entered. What she saw made her heart clench: John was lying on his side, clawing at the mattress with a madman's manic ferocity.

"John?"

He neither heard nor cared and continued digging his nails into the mattress, slowly causing tears and rips as he tore through the sheets. John eventually began pounding the bed and started screaming in despair, the pain of loss proving too much for him to bear. Sarah rushed to his side and tried to calm her son, distraught by his crazed behaviour.

"John? Stop! John? JOHN! Stop this, now! Damn it, John. Please… just stop!"

Despite herself, Sarah felt tears of her own falling down her cheek. She grabbed John's arms and held them in a death grip, but his persistence was beyond her ability to control, and he soon wrestled free of her restraints. He didn't resume his attack on the mattress, however, and instead opted for hitting Sarah. His strikes were weak, the result of endless psychological torment; he had lost the will to do… anything. He wouldn't even breathe if it wasn't a natural reflex.

"John? C'mon now, stop! C'mon, please. Stop. Stop. Stop."

John's attacks grew weaker with each punch until he finally let go and slumped onto her shoulder, crying with renewed vigour and speaking for the first time in hours.

"I… I… I can't Mom I… just… can't… She's… she's… Mom she's gone…! She's really gone…"

"I know… I know… It's okay, John… Everything's going to be okay…"

But it wasn't okay, she knew this. It would never be okay, not until he got the machine back. He would forever be broken, and may never recover. Sarah cradled her son, gently whispering comforting words into his ear, knowing full well that they would make no difference. He continued to sob hysterically as everything good in his life turned to dust; there would never be another sunrise for him, no reprieve from the pain.

Sarah sensed she was being watched and looked up to see Ethan standing there, his eyes bearing the subtle signs of false remorse. He folded his arms and leaned against the door frame, examining John carefully before speaking.

"Sarah, there's a call for you, sounds pretty urgent."

Sarah nodded; _Derek no doubt_. She planned to skin him alive when he finally showed up. His absence had made everything that little bit worse, and he was going to pay his due. Sarah carefully extricated herself from John, giving him a tender kiss on his brow before following Ethan into the kitchen and spotting the phone still attached to the wall.

"I thought you said I had a call?"

"I lied. We need to talk… about Derek."

Sarah crossed her arms angrily and glared at Ethan for dragging her away from her grieving son.

"What about him?"

"I'm not usually one to jump to conclusions…"

John silently crept to his door, listening to every word with rapt attention.

"…but we need to consider the possibility that Derek is somehow involved with Cameron's disappearance."

Sarah sighed and ran her hand through her hair. She'd considered this before, but only fleetingly.

"Why would he hurt Cameron? His bitter feud with her ended weeks ago when he discovered it was you, not Cameron, who tortured him in 2027."

Ethan narrowed his eyes at Sarah, annoyed at her inaccurate assignment of blame.

"That wasn't me, remember? It was Kevin behind the wheel back then, I'm in charge now. Besides, that's not what I was referring to. Derek, though over his sordid past, still considers John and Cameron's relationship as wrong, and I believe that he will do anything to see it end."

"But you said yourself; Cameron is still alive, wherever she is."

"True, but that doesn't mean he hasn't chained her up in a shipping crate or something. She could be half way to Greenland by now."

Sarah nodded slowly; it would not be a stretch for Derek to do something like that, and it would explain his recent absence.

"Well, either way, we'll have to wait until he gets home before we ask him."

Ethan flexed his wrist slightly, summoning a small tubule from within his arm, a small flame lighting the end. Sarah stared at the weapon with sheer disconcertion, fearing what Ethan had in mind.

"I could bring him home."

"No! Just leave things as they are. The last thing this family needs is everyone at each other's throats."

Ethan sighed and retracted the tubule, leaving a small cut on his wrist where it had pushed through from beneath.

"Well, you know where to find me if you change your mind."

He turned to leave, but paused and looked back. Ethan opened his mouth and closed it again; he seemed to be considering something. After a few seconds of silence, Ethan locked eyes with Sarah and spoke his piece.

"I… know… that ever since the… merge… I've been a different person. My emotions, my… feelings have dulled somewhat…"

Ethan laughed at his own words, tasting the lies.

"...No! That's an understatement… I can no longer feel certain… feelings… Remorse… regret… It's like… when Kevin was erased… when he imprinted a part of himself onto me… he took my conscience with him… Cameron was, is, everything to me… and now she's gone and I… Damn it!"

Sarah jumped back a few paces as Ethan drove his fist into the wall, leaving a gaping hole. He slowly removed his hand, staring at his bloodied knuckles and the small glint of chrome beneath.

"I can't… feel… anything… I've shed not one single tear… felt not one moment of… sorrow… Just pain and anger… I'm not even sure if I can still… love her… as a sister I mean."

Sarah took a tentative step forwards and retrieved the First Aid kit out of the cupboard.

"Why are you telling me this?"

Ethan waved away Sarah's offer of aid and made to leave, but stopped once more.

"Because… I don't know. I guess I just needed to vent, you know. We need to find her… we will find her… for John's sake and mine."

--

"That's it? You're just gonna let me go?"

"That's the plan."

Ellison unlocked the cuffs and took a step back, allowing Derek to get to his feet, rubbing his wrists.

"So you're not going to cart me off to the gas chamber?"

"No, you're doing good work. These machines need to be stopped in the here and now. I have no interest in the future. What will come, will come, nothing can change that. All I can hope to do is save as many lives as I can in this day and age. Go, return to the Connors, and give them my best."

Derek eyed the agent suspiciously as he slowly made for the door, wary of being struck by a surprise attack, but he remained unhindered as he strode out into the garden and raced back to the Connor house.

Ellison opened his fridge and pulled out an evidence packet containing a set of broken implants, taken from the remains of Jason Corvain, a rather unusual cyborg. Ellison smiled down at these trinkets and saw his plan beginning to take form.

--

Derek stepped onto the threshold, seeing no one in either the living room or the kitchen.

"Hello, anyone here?"

Sarah entered the kitchen and glared at him, her eyes promising a serious earful. Ethan also emerged, his arms crossed and a suspicious glint in his eyes. Then John appeared, shocking everyone as he charged Derek and delivered a punch to his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Derek collapsed to the floor, caught completely by surprise.

John delivered a vicious snap-kick to his face, knocking Derek on his back and began kicking him repeatedly until Sarah intervened and managed to drag a screaming John away from striking distance.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?! WHERE IS SHE, YOU EVIL TWISTED…?"

Derek gasped for breath as he tried in vain to understand what was happening and why John was attacking him.

"Where's… who?"

John made a lunge towards Derek, slipping out of Sarah's grip and charging towards his uncle, fist raised. Sarah turned to Ethan and gave him a look that screamed for help. Reluctantly, Ethan grabbed John by the shoulders and pulled him away.

"Where's who? Who do you think? Cameron, what did you do with her? LET GO OF ME!!"

"Not until you've calmed down."

"I'll be calm; I'll be very calm once he tells me exactly where I can find my Cam!"

Derek staggered to his feet, slowly getting his breath back.

"I… I don't… know anything… about that machine…"

John's flailed even more upon hearing Derek's remark.

"She. Is. Not. Just. A. Machine… She's so much more than that."

John began to cry once more, his head hung in resignation.

"Please tell me what you did to her. Give me that much at least."

Derek clutched his stomach and leaned against the wall, his breathing still ragged.

"John… I swear to you: I have nothing to do with any of this. I don't know where she is or what has happened to her."

"But you must… you're the only one… Who else would hurt her?"

"_I recently had an encounter with one of these so-called Terminators… but it let me live, for reasons I have yet to understand."_

The memory flashed through Derek's mind like a bolt of lightning.

"Ellison."

"Who? Ellison? The FBI agent?"

"He captured me, that's where I've been all this time. He told me he had a run-in with a machine, but it spared him. Sound like someone we know?"

John stared at the floor, his eyes darting from left to right.

"Cameron. Maybe, maybe she caught him spying on us at the beach and went to find out what he was up to. Once they were alone, he could've shocked her into standby and… Yes, it all makes sense now. He did it. That bastard took Cameron."

Sarah slowly approached her son, who was no longer struggling against Ethan's grip.

"John… you're jumping to conclusions."

Ethan finally let go of John, sensing that the danger had passed. John looked at everyone in turn before settling on Sarah, his face completely blank.

"Conclusions are all I have left."


	6. Human Error

**Chapter Six: Human Error**

"The machine must be cleansed, for it carries the taint of death, and only through fire can it be removed."

The cultists gathered in a circle around Cameron, each holding a candle and all reciting their mantra in perfect unison. Cameron was trapped, with no means of escape, and could not help but feel genuine fear as the hooded men gathered around her, Silberman amongst them. He smiled crookedly and gently ran a finger down the side of Cameron's cheek, who recoiled at his touch.

She was positioned in front of the furnace, ready to be slid into that fiery oblivion. Cameron looked around frantically, but saw no faces, only dark shadows beneath those hoods. No sympathy, no remorse, no regret. Just that crazed belief in what they were about to do. They would never see reason, the will of fanatics was nearly impossible to break, but she tried anyway.

"Please… don't do this. I'm not like the others. I'm here to help."

Silberman simply smiled and turned to his followers, holding his hands in a reverent gesture.

"And here you see, my brothers, the many forms these demons take. They would even appear in the guise of an innocent child, but we must look past the mask and see what lies beneath."

Silberman drew a knife and cut deep into Cameron's right cheek, revealing a thin line of chrome beneath her skin. The cultists raised their candles and chanted even louder as Silberman prepared to push the button that would slide Cameron into the furnace.

"The machine must be cleansed. Let it be cleansed. Will it to be cleansed. It shall be cleansed."

Cameron closed her eyes, preparing for the end, her thoughts solely focused on John as Silberman began applying pressure to the button. Before he could suppress it further, however, a sudden explosion erupted within the chamber, sending rocks and debris amidst the cultists, causing them to scatter in all directions.

Cameron opened her eyes and pitched her head up to identify the source of the disturbance, seeing a gaping hole in the farthest wall, a lone figure framed within it. His features were concealed by shadows and dust, but his voice was all-too-familiar.

"Catch you fuckers at a bad time?"

The man raised his palm and a jet of fire burst from his hand, incinerating a nearby group of cultists. They cried out in pain and scattered, allowing the man a clear shot at those gathered around Cameron. They quickly gathered their weapons, screaming that the 'Dragon' had come. Before any of them could fire however, they were all consumed by the flames, leaving Silberman as the last standing.

He grabbed a nearby gun and unloaded it into the man's chest, with no effect. The man, who Cameron could now see clearly, was wearing a black jacket with a dark purple hood, concealing his face in shadow. His eyes, however, glowed blood-red, and Cameron felt a smile touch her lips.

"You… You have invaded this place of worship… The house of God…"

"Not my God."

The man delivered a kick to Silberman's chest, sending the crazed cultist tumbling into the furnace, a fitting end in Cameron's opinion. He only screamed for a few seconds before the thermite melted his vocal cords, the rest of him following suite.

The man approached Cameron's side and just stared at her for a long moment, his eyes no longer glowing. Slowly, he lowered his hood, revealing the face of Cameron's brother, unchanged by the years. She smiled up at Ethan as he reached out and placed two fingers on her arm, to prove to himself that she was really there. 

Upon feeling her there, Ethan let out a sigh of disbelief mingled with relief and joy. He smiled as he ran his fingers through her hair, but that smile quickly faded into a look of sullenness. He ceased his affections and looked Cameron in the eye, his face now set like stone.

"I've hit dozens of places like this in the past three years, hoping that I'll find some release from the pain of living. But once every cultist, every murderer, every rapist lies dead, I feel hollow once more. Not this time though, this time I've found what I'm looking for, except now that I have it; I don't know what I should do."

"Ethan I…"

"Should I release it, give it a hug; tell it how glad I am to see it after all these years. Or should I press this button…"

Ethan placed his finger on the green button that would send Cameron to her fiery death, but did not press it.

"…and send her back into that nothingness. A fitting revenge for the pain she's caused… for all of us left behind."

"Ethan… please… Don't…"

Ethan glared at her for a moment, his expression softening as he looked into those brown eyes for the first time in years. His finger slipped off of the button and Cameron gave a sigh of relief, for she truly expected him to push it. Ethan immediately began burning through the chains with his IAD ChemTech, and after twenty minutes, Cameron was free.

She sat up and looked around at the burning corpses before returning her gaze to Ethan, who was examining a small puncture wound on his wrist, a side effect of the flamethrower tubule as it slides out of his arm and through his skin.

"How did you know…?"

"…that you were here?"

Ethan covered the wound and set about gathering weapons, avoiding eye contact with Cameron.

"We received an interesting message from a local bottom-feeder; who told us that a girl called Cameron wished to meet John. Naturally, I was sent to investigate, but when I got there the place had already been hit by these freaks, and you were gone. So I followed their trail to this location, and here you were, ready to be given a thermite bath. Guess I got here just in time, didn't I?"

"Yes you did. Thank you."

Ethan picked up two Desert Eagles; Cameron's, and handed them to her, finally making eye contact. She smiled nervously, not knowing how he might react. Ethan just shook his head, his eyes narrowing.

"How about you tell me where the hell you've been all this time?"

Cameron lowered her head; this was going to hard to explain.

"I never left this city. I can't explain what happened to me, all I remember is falling asleep on a beach in 2008 and waking up in 2011. I have no idea how it happened, and the only conclusion I can think of makes little sense."

"And what conclusion is that?"

"Time displacement."

Ethan crossed his arms and scrutinized her carefully.

"Time travel? Right, okay, so if there was a TDE on that beach then why wasn't John transported as well?"

"I don't know. I told you, I can't explain what happened. All I know is that I came out of standby without any clothes and then I found Derek, and he told me…"

"Derek? You've seen him? Where?"

"In our house, he seemed to be looking for something."

"John sent him to check the house in case you returned. He's been doing that for years. But he hasn't returned, what happened to him?"

Cameron shifted uncomfortably, her thoughts drifting to the sight of Derek's body.

"He was killed by the Bureau. It was an ambush."

Ethan sighed and ran a hand over his mouth.

"How the hell am I going to explain to John that his uncle is dead? Especially after losing you and then Sa-… never mind, I'll think of something. C'mon, get your things; we have to get you back to John."

Cameron caught his slip up, and could only conclude that he was about to say Sarah. _So she is dead, as I feared. Oh, John, you must be in so much pain. But I'm coming, we'll be together again and everything will be alright._

--

Ethan led her down a long underground corridor with dozens of doors on both sides. They were in the 'Sanctuary', John's hide-out and base of operations, though Ethan refused to elaborate on what those operations involved. They reached the very end of the corridor, stopping at door number 212. Ethan knocked and they waited for a few seconds before it opened, revealing a short man armed with a shotgun.

"Oh, Ethan it's you. Who's the girl?"

"A friend… of myself and Connor, so let us in already."

The man stared at Cameron for a moment before standing aside, allowing them to enter the small room filled with a wide variety of firearms and explosives.

"What exactly does John do nowadays?"

Ethan followed her gaze and smirked.

"John is the leader of the largest mafia group in the whole of Los Angeles. The only ones powerful enough to bring him down are the Bureau, and they'll have to find him first."

"So John is a mob boss?"

"You could say that. He's no Godfather, but that doesn't mean he isn't scary. C'mon."

Ethan led her into another room where a woman was sat at a desk, an old magazine in her hands.

"Ah, Ethan, you're late!"

"Sorry Penny, I got a little side-tracked."

Penny eyed Cameron suspiciously.

"So I see. Have you forgotten what John told you about picking up strangers?"

"I remember, but she isn't just some stranger; this is my sister. I've been looking for her for years."

"And now, after all this time, she finally turns up. How convenient."

Ethan placed his hands on the desk and leaned towards Penny.

"I assure you, she is not a spy. Is he in?"

Penny sat back and picked up a nail filer.

"Yes, we caught a few agents today; he's interrogating a rather tough one in your absence."

"Good, can we go in?"

"I suppose. Go ahead, but be careful; he's not in a very good mood at the moment. Apparently his uncle was found dead, he's pretty distraught, the poor thing."

Ethan gave a sigh of relief and stood up straight.

"Well, at least I wasn't the one to tell him."

"Yes, he might've blown your brains out too."

"He killed the messenger?"

Cameron's voice was little more than whisper; the idea that John would execute someone for bringing him bad news was troubling. Penny started filing her fingers and smiled slyly.

"Oh, yes. Like I said; very distraught, I'd be careful around him dear. He might decide to take out his… frustration… on you."

"John would never hurt me."

Ethan turned around and took her guns, placing them on Penny's desk, along with his own.

"John isn't the same person you knew. Everything that has happened these past years has had a serious effect on him. You may not recognise him at all, and I honestly have no idea how he is going to react when he sees you. So be careful… and don't provoke him in any way."

Cameron became very concerned. As much as she yearned to see him again, she was a little apprehensive as to how John might behave. Would he be angry? Overjoyed? Would he really hurt her? Either way, she was about to find out as Ethan knocked on the door four times.

--

The feel of a man's teeth cracking beneath your fist was like nothing else in the world, as many would agree. But to John Connor, it was nothing short of therapeutic, easier than kidnapping a shrink. Everything that had befallen him in the past three years, Derek's death being the most recent, fuelled each punch. He didn't usually interrogate prisoners himself, but with Ethan gone and Derek dead, he needed someone to be his punch-bag.

This particular subject was an agent for the Bureau. Like his associates, the agent was tight-lipped about his operations, but John felt he was finally getting through to him as the man's canines flew out of his mouth in a spray of blood.

"You ready to talk now, or would you like me to start working on your fronts? I imagine that will be a very unpleasant experience."

The agent glared at John, a look of pure contempt in his eyes.

"Fro… to frell."

"Now you see, that won't accomplish anything, cos' if I die the whole world is screwed. Cos' you see, I'm the one destined to save humanity from total annihilation. But I can't do that if you lot keep hunting me all the time, so do the world a favour and answer my fucking question!"

The agent spat a mouthful of blood on the floor and continued to glare at John.

"Still you refuse, alright, have it your way."

Three knocks, then a two second pause followed by a fourth knock. _Ethan, at last you return_.

"It's too bad my friend. I was having such a good time. Now my best man will finish what I've started, and trust me, compared to him, I'm a fluffy teddy bear. COME IN."

John turned around to see Ethan standing there and smiled.

"I was beginning to worry."

"I'm sorry… about Derek."

John's smile faded instantly and his features instantly darkened.

"I don't wanna talk about that; this here is a place of business."

Ethan's eyes lingered on the agent for a moment, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly.

"So I see… John?"

"Yeah?"

Ethan smiled and opened his mouth to say something, but instead just stepped aside. What John saw next blew every thought out of his mind. His entire body became totally numb as his ears confirmed what he was seeing.

"John?"

--

It was him. It was John. Just not her John. Not the John from 2027 and certainly not the John from 2008. This was an entirely different version, one born of pain and betrayal. Though only twenty years old, John looked aged beyond his years. His hair was a lighter shade of brown, his eyes seemed darker, and he bore a thin diagonal scar across his face, marring his otherwise handsome features.

And the background did little to improve his current image; a man tied to a chair, covered in blood, his teeth scattered across the floor. Cameron wondered to herself; _how could John resort to this level of violence?_ But then, he had displayed such darkness in the past; his attack on Sarkissian coming to mind. But that was out of rage and a need for revenge, not something as impersonal as information gathering.

Something inside him had died and left a sour bitterness in its wake, and whatever that was, it was currently contorting his face into hate and anger.

"Get her away from me! Take her away! Lock her up!"

His voice was hoarse and carried a thousand different kinds of pain. Cameron was overwhelmed by his state and cautiously approached, offering her hand and speaking in a soft voice she hoped would sooth him.

"John, it's me, Cameron. Everything's going to be…"

"I said GET HER OUT!!"

Cameron recoiled at his outburst and felt tears welling in her eyes. John spotted them and turned around, his arms wrapped around his head in a desperate attempt to blot out her existence.

"Ethan, so help me God, if you don't remove her now I'll reduce you both to scrap."

Ethan sighed and gently took Cameron by the arm and dragged her out of the room, closing the door behind him. Cameron's last glimpse of John showed him viciously beating the agent, and even after the door was closed, she could still hear his roars of anger.

--

"I'm sorry about this, but he'd flay my skin off if I didn't take these unnecessary measures."

Ethan clicked the lock on Cameron's chains, fastening her to the wall. She just sat there, staring at the floor, a look of utter misery on her face. Cameron gave a small sob and fresh tears ran down her face. Ethan wiped a drop from the end of her nose and stroked the side of her face affectionately.

"Hey, everything's going to be fine, you'll see."

"He wouldn't even look at me. He hates me."

"But he didn't kill you, which is something he often said he'd do should you ever show up again. So a part of him still cares, he just needs time to adjust to the idea of having you back."

Cameron stopped crying and looked up at Ethan, that innocent look of child-like hope lining every feature.

"Please, can you talk to him, explain…"

"I'll try, but you have to understand: John has lost everything he ever held dear. He was nearly driven insane by your disappearance. He blamed everyone, but not half as much as he blamed himself. He angered the wrong people, and provoked a violent response that led to his mother's death. The guilt of that, coupled with the loss of you, led him down a very dark path. And the world seemed to be dragged down along with him."

Cameron gave another sob, her hope turning to despair once again.

"It is all my fault."

"You may have been the catalyst, but that doesn't mean it was your fault. If what you said is true, then you are no more to blame than I am. This is Skynet's doing, and there is nothing you could've done to prevent it."

Cameron began shaking her head as more tears started to flood her eyes.

"We were so happy."

She fell into Ethan's arms and buried her face into his shoulder, crying without restraint. He held her close and whispered in her ear, trying desperately to comfort her in some way, but a sharp tap on the door put a stop to that.

"Ethan, Connor wants to see you, now."

Ethan sighed and extricated himself from Cameron, placing a kiss on her brow.

"I'll talk to him, I promise."

He stood up and left without another word, leaving Cameron alone in the dark cell.

--

"You can't just lock her up and forget about her."

"I can do whatever the hell I like."

"Damn it, John. All these years you've been looking for her, all this time, and now, now that she has finally returned to you, you want to pretend she doesn't exist?"

"It's easier this way."

"What? Hiding from your pain? I've told you before; you can't lie to me. I served by your side for five years in the Resistance. I know you better than you know yourself, so stop lying to me, stop lying to yourself and talk to her."

--

The door slid open, the light from the corridor almost blinding her for a moment. A man came in and unlocked her chains, allowing her to stand up.

"He wants to see you. Follow me."

--

His room was less luxurious than she imagined. Just a small bed, a single cupboard, a desk with a computer, and another, larger desk in the middle of the room. John was sat at this desk, writing something down, apparently unaware that she had arrived, though Cameron knew him to be pretending. John finished writing and put the pen down with some force before finally looking up at her.

"So… let us get straight to it, shall we?"

"John I-…"

"I wake up, after what was possibly the best day of my sad and sorry existence, and you're gone. Explain to me why that was."

John's voice was cold and harsh, like he was talking to an incompetent employee, not the girl he once loved. Cameron took a deep breath, though he knew she didn't need to breathe, and began her speech.

"I woke up, without any clothes, on that very beach… alone. I don't know what happened, all I know is that I had somehow travelled forward by three years."

"Time travel, you expect me to believe that you travelled in time to this date. I don't remember seeing a TDE on that beach, and if there was one it was pretty well hidden."

Cameron allowed herself a smile, hoping that it would soften his demeanour…

"That's exactly what Ethan said."

…but it didn't, he just glared at her.

"Then Ethan isn't as gullible as I initially thought. Though you should really thank him for our little exchange, if it wasn't for his constant whining I would've left you to rot in that cell."

"Why?"

John leaned forward, his harsh features thrown into deep contrast by the desk light.

"Because I hate you."

His voice was filled with so much venom and bile that Cameron actually backed away a few steps, shocked by the intensity of his hatred.

"You don't mean that."

John hackled maniacally and got out of his chair, slowly stalking towards her.

"Oh I do, with every fibre of my being. You ruined my life. Tore out my heart and let it burn on a bloodied spike. I lost everything. Everything! Because you up and disappeared. I lost my mom, you remember her?"

Cameron's jaw quivered as he advanced, her back pressed against the wall.

"John, please…"

"She died, because of you. If you hadn't abandoned me, she would still be alive, and so would Derek, and none of this would've happened. IT IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!"

This was the tipping point. Cameron cried out and slid to the floor, unable to restrain herself.

"Please, please just stop… I can't take any more."

John looked down at her and grimaced.

"Welcome to my world."

Despite himself, John felt a familiar twinge deep down, something he had not felt for years: regret. His anger was slowly changing, mutating into something else entirely, and he couldn't stand the thought of feeling anything less than hatred for Cameron. But as she sat there, heaving and sobbing, begging for forgiveness, John felt another twinge, and then another, and in the space of a few seconds he felt true remorse.

"Please, John… I'm so sorry; I never meant to leave you… Please…"

John turned his back on her, trying desperately to shut out the love he had buried so many years ago. But it was too strong, and he had to grit his teeth against it. Cameron got to her feet and slowly approached him from behind, placing her hand on his shoulder.

John spun around and grabbed Cameron's arms, slamming her into his desk. She stared at him, her eyes wide with very real fear as he took a few steps back and drew a gun from his belt. Instead of aiming it at her however, he placed the gun against his own head, which scared Cameron even more.

"John, don't… please. I can't live without you… Please, just put the gun down."

"I can't do this. I can't risk losing you again and going through the same… crap as before. I can't. I'd rather die than face that again. Never again. I needed you and you weren't there. YOU WEREN'T THERE!!"

Cameron remained rooted to the spot, afraid that any movement would result in him pulling the trigger.

"And what about me? I lost you too. Maybe not for so long, but I still lost you. You woke up and I was gone, and I woke up to find you gone. We lost each other, but please… don't split us apart again, not now that we've finally been brought back together."

John's hand started to shake and he began to hyperventilate, the stress becoming too much for him to handle. Cameron just stood there, silent and desperate tears running down her face.

"John, please… I love you."

And that was all it took to drive John over the edge. He knew what he wanted, what he needed above all else to relieve the pain and he decided to take it, to hell with the consequences.

--

He threw the gun to the floor and charged Cameron, grabbing her head with both hands. Cameron fully expected him to try and rip her head off, but instead he pressed their lips together with such intensity that she could almost feel the pain of it. Once she realised that this was not an attack, that John had finally come to his senses, Cameron kissed back with equal force.

John reached behind her and brushed aside everything on his desk. He lifted her up onto the surface and immediately began unzipping her track suit; Cameron pulled her arms out of the sleeves and wrapped them around his neck, not breaking their kiss for a second. John unbuckled her boots and removed them, socks and all, before pulling her track suit off entirely.

Cameron tore off his shirt, revealing a number of scars on his bare chest. She gave a small sigh of dismay at the thought of him having come to harm, but was quickly swept up once more by John's lips. She gently unbuckled his belt and pulled it free from his trousers, then got to work on the zip while John removed her tank top. She pulled his trousers and boxers down past his hips, allowing them to slide to his feet as he hastily removed her brassier.

They kissed again, a small pause as John carefully removed her last item of clothing with loving care and looked at her naked form for the first time in three years. Cameron pulled him into another kiss, stopping only to whisper in his ear.

"Nothing can keep us apart forever. I'll always find you, John."

"I missed you so much, it destroyed me. But you're here now, and that's all that matters. I love you Cam, and nothing will come between us ever again."

Cameron answered his admission with a loving smile followed by another passionate kiss as they leaned back onto the desk. John started kissing her neck, slowly making his way further down her body. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, waiting for John to finish his explorations and return his lips to hers. But he didn't, instead she felt a sudden rush of pleasure flare throughout her entire body, unlike anything she had felt during their previous encounters.

She gasped and moaned as the pleasure increased, slowly becoming more and more intense as her entire body trembled. Unwittingly, she cried out, and everything went temporarily blank, her mind consumed by sheer ecstasy. When Cameron opened her eyes she discovered that she had indeed suffered a temporary black out as a result of her systems going into overload. Time elapsed: 120 seconds, as usual. It seemed her mind was not originally designed to handle such intense physical stimulation.

John was gazing down at her with a look of concern on his face. They were on his bed; apparently he had carried her there after her little collapse. His concern turned to relief as she showed signs of life and looked into his eyes, seeing his love renewed.

"Hey, I thought I lost you there. What happened?"

"System overload. I needed to reboot."

John chuckled and ran his hand through her hair.

"Does that mean you're all charged up again?"

She answered his question by pulling him close and gently running her fingers down his side. They kissed once more as their bodies joined together, creating a conduit between their souls, making them as one.

The three year rift that separated them was violently cast aside as they both delivered each other into that blissful oblivion.


	7. Desperate Times

**Chapter Seven: Desperate Times…**

"_I need her. She saved my life."_

John picked his clothes carefully, black jeans, black shirt, the darker the better. Ethan appeared at his door, wearing similar attire, his hands tucked in his trouser pockets.

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

John checked the stun-gun: fully charged.

"If he has anything to do with this, I gotta know."

"And what if things get out of hand? Going after him could have serious repercussions, for all of us."

"To hell with the consequences."

Ethan stood up straight and clenched his fists slightly.

"Alright then; let's be bad guys."

--

_They don't pay me enough for this_, thought Ellison, as he approached his car. He'd spent yet another long day pushing papers and other related activities. Being an agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation had its ups and downs, and this belonged to the latter.

Ellison held out his key and pressed the button, deactivating the alarm. Before he could enter his vehicle, however, a boy no older than seventeen stood in his path. Ellison paused for a moment before bursting into laughter at what he assumed to be an attempted mugging.

"I hope you're not thinking about doing anything stupid here."

"Why? Would that scare you?"

Ellison laughed even more, casually opening his suit to reveal the gun concealed there.

"Boy, you sure picked the wrong guy to jump. Now turn around and go home to your mother."

The young adult started towards him, undeterred by the gun.

"My mother tried to kill me, you pathetic meat-bag."

Ellison couldn't believe what he was seeing; this youth was actually going to attack him. Upon reflex, Ellison drew his gun and the youth finally stopped; a mocking grin on his face.

"Go ahead lawman, take a shot."

Ellison held his ground, but kept his finger away from the trigger.

"So you're not afraid of firearms, but maybe you ought to reconsider that, cos' this weapon can blow a hole through your head, boy. Believe me, I've seen it first-hand."

It was the youth's turn to laugh, a maniacal cackle that sent shivers down Ellison's spine.

"Your gun isn't the one I should be afraid of."

Suddenly, something struck Ellison's back and every nerve on his body was on fire as a thousand volts coursed through him, rendering the agent unconscious. Ethan approached Ellison and recovered his pistol, examining it with relish as John came out of the shadows, stun-gun in hand.

"Hmm, I really like these weapons. Machine guns are so… mechanical and cumbersome. Shotguns are heavy and inaccurate. But pistols… their small and they get the job done. You can even silence them."

"Well, I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. But we need to get him out of here. Help me get him in the car."

Ethan tucked the pistol in his belt and picked up Ellison without any assistance, dumping the agent in the trunk of his own car before getting in the drivers seat.

"Nice car. These FBI agents sure don't skimp, do they?"

"Just drive."

John's irritable attitude was beginning to wear thin, but Ethan knew better than to push him, to do so would result in a fight, a fight that John would lose… in every possible way. So he just turned the ignition and did as he was told.

"You're the boss."

--

Ellison awoke to find himself tied to a chair and soaked through; apparently he'd been woken by a bucket of water being poured over his head. He shook his head, clearing his vision and felt his muscles ache, a side-effect of the stun-gun. As his vision became less blurry and more focused, Ellison realised that someone was sitting opposite him, a boy he recognised from an all-too-familiar case file.

"You… You're… Why have you done this?"

"I have done this because I believe you have something that is of great value to me."

"What? I don't… I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yeah, course you don't."

John stood up and delivered a sharp punch to Ellison's face, drawing blood with the first go.

"What… What the hell are you doing? We're on the same side!"

"Oh, I seriously doubt that. Derek told me all about your little vendetta against the machines. That's how I know you took her, and I hope for your sake she's still in one piece."

Ellison was incredulous, he had absolutely no idea who this 'she' was, but it sounded like whoever 'she' was, John cared about her a great deal. And that placed Ellison in a very difficult position.

"I'm going to make this easy on you; give her back to me or my friend here will do what he does best."

"And I can guarantee it won't be pleasant."

Ellison recognised that voice, the youth. So they were in it together. No doubt John was the one who shocked him from behind. The youth was behind him, preparing a variety of sharp objects.

"Listen, I have no idea what you're talking about. But whatever has happened, whoever has been stolen from you, I can help you find her. If you let me go, I swear; you'll have my word as an FBI agent that I'll do whatever it takes to find your friend."

John punched him again, followed by a kick to the face.

"LIAR!! You are the one behind this all. There's no other explanation for her disappearance. It's you, you're behind it and you WILL tell me what you've done with Cameron."

"Who?"

--

"Damn it, John. Not again."

Sarah looked at John's empty room with utter disdain. He'd done it again; gone on another one of his vendettas. She went to Ethan's room to ask him if he knew where John had got to; only Ethan wasn't in his room either. This was starting to get a little odd, though Sarah felt somewhat relieved that they were together, at least that way John would be safe.

"Derek? Charley?"

They both came from either side of the hall, slightly concerned by Sarah's tone of voice, which spoke of worry.

"What's up?"

"I'll give you three guesses but you're only gonna need one."

"John's snuck out again?"

Derek peered into John's room and sighed.

"Maybe we ought to ask the metal, he might know where John's disappeared to."

"No, he's gone too. I think they went out together."

Charley crossed his arms, unaccustomed to his son-in-law's new behaviour.

"Why would he do that? What is he after?"

"The question isn't what he's after; it's who."

Derek gave an expression that indicated a light switching somewhere within his mind.

"Ellison."

--

Ellison cried out as Ethan applied more pressure to his fingers, slowly cutting off circulation and squeezing the bone beneath.

"Now are you gonna talk?"

John was leaning forward in his chair, a look of disgust on his face. He took little joy in watching the agent suffer, but considering the circumstances, he allowed himself a small amount of satisfaction. Kevin had detailed files on torture methodology, all of which were passed on to Ethan, who displayed his skill with merciless efficiency.

"I know what it's like to be in your position. I was tortured once, by this guy here no less. So believe me when I tell you; I understand your pain. Now do yourself a favour and tell me what I want to know."

Ellison just stared at him. John had been broken, something had twisted him inside, turned him towards hate. Ellison even entertained the theory that the boy was possessed by some form of demon, it certainly seemed that way.

"You… You're crazy. I've told you over and over… I have no idea who this Cameron is or what happened to her."

"You're lying… again. Why must you continue to play difficult? Why can you not just admit to what you've done? Why won't you give her back to me?"

"Because I don't have her!"

Ellison's outburst was born of frustration and anger, neither of which John had any time for, so he turned to Ethan, a look of resolve on his face.

"Escalate!"

"John… I've tried a variety of techniques, he's resisted each one, and I doubt anything else I do would work."

"Then try something else."

"What do you have in mind?"

John considered for a moment before smiling to himself.

"Psychological. Show him what he fears."

Ethan almost wished he hadn't understood John's meaning, but he obeyed regardless and dug the knife into his right arm and cut down to his wrist. He then cut a full circle around his arm, beneath the elbow, and tore the flesh from his lower arm, revealing the endo-skeletal arm beneath. Ellison stared at it with wonder, which soon turned to horror as he put two and two together, coming up with three.

"My God, you're one of them? You work with the machines?"

"I work with this one, and technically he wasn't a machine to begin with. But the other one I'm looking for, Cameron, she's the real deal and a special one at that. So I'm going to ask you for the last time: where is she?"

Ellison eyed the mechanical arm warily and sighed.

"I told you: I don't know."

John had had enough and swiped Ethan's gun, aiming it at Ellison's head.

--

"Where the hell are they?"

"They could be anywhere in the city by now."

Derek scanned the area, looking for any sign of John and Ethan. By chance, he spotted a familiar silver car parked outside an old warehouse.

"Well, that was a lot simpler than I imagined."

--

"One last time."

"How can I answer a question that I don't possess the answer to?"

John pointed at Ellison's shoulder and pulled the trigger. Ellison screamed as the bullet skimmed his collar bone, barely missing his body altogether. A flesh wound, but a painful one at that.

"TELL ME!"

"John I don't think…"

John pointed the gun at Ethan and pulled the hammer back.

"Say another word and I'll put one right in your eye socket."

Ethan held his hands up and stepped away.

"Fine, kill him then, but it's not going to help anyone."

"It'll help me."

John aimed for Ellison's head, who gave a silent pray before having his brains splattered. A voice called from behind him, and Ellison realised that John hadn't pulled the trigger, and that he was still alive.

"JOHN! What the hell are you doing? He's a federal agent, are you crazy?"

"I can't make it stop, Mom. No matter what I do, I can't make it stop."

Ellison opened his eyes to see Sarah wrestling with her son for control of the gun as Derek pointed a gun at Ethan. Charley was also present, appalled at what he was seeing. He quickly untied Ellison and helped him off of his chair.

"NO! No, he has to tell me what he did to her. He knows… he knows… he… knows…"

"No, John, he doesn't, okay? Cameron left you, that is the only explanation. She abandoned you."

"But why? Why would she do this to me?"

"Maybe because she knew that staying with you would hurt you more in the long run, maybe she wanted you to have a chance at a normal life."

"But… I'll never have a normal life. She was the only… Mom, I loved her… I… NO!"

John fell to the floor in hysterics, Sarah having finally gotten hold of the gun and chucked it across the room. She now cradled her son as he cried into her shoulder, all desire for revenge washed away by his grief as he finally realised that Ellison was telling the truth.

And that meant one thing: Cameron was truly gone.


	8. Angels & Demons

**Chapter Eight: Angels & Demons**

_Rain._

_The showers light up every sensor on her body like a Christmas tree, and she smiles, because she can feel the rain drops as she should. No more data, no more statistics and useless analysis of each impact; just the pure joy of knowing you exist. She places her hand on her chest and feels the steady rhythm of her human heart, the human blood pumping through her veins._

_She turns to John and feels true love for the first time in her life. But he just stares at her without expression, his eyes briefly glowing blue. For this was the price for her humanity; she had to make a choice, one that would render the other lifeless, or at least, as far from alive as you could without being dead. _

_A shadow emerged from the rain and pointed its gun at her, poised to snatch away that which she desired above all else. But John was there to protect her, he was there to take the bullet, he was there for her._

John awoke with a start, calling her name. It took him a moment to realise that it had all been a dream, none of it was real. But he could still hear the sound of her heartbeat; he could still feel the bullet ricocheting off his endoskeleton. Instinctively, John placed his hand over the non-existent wound, and pressed down, feeling the human bone beneath.

He took a moment to steady his breathing, telling himself to get a grip and stop fretting over things that never happened. A small hand with slender fingers snaked its way up his chest, gently pulling him back onto the pillow. John turned over to see her lying there, as beautiful as the day she disappeared, more so even, as he never really appreciated just how gorgeous she was back then.

She gave him a comforting smile and began twirling his hair playfully.

"Bad dream?"

Her voice was softer than a whisper, but no less audible. Somehow he could always hear her when she spoke, no matter how quiet she made herself. John had once compared her to a mouse; impossible to hear through the floorboards, but when she did make a noise it was unmistakable as to who made it.

"Just the usual, nothing to worry about, but you do worry, don't you?"

She ceased toying with his hair and ran her fingers across his diagonal scar, performing a brief scan in the process.

"I do."

John took her hand in his and pulled her closer until they were lying less than a centimetre apart. She let out a small breath, expecting to be sent into that realm of rapture, but instead John just held her. After a few moments Cameron realised that he was looking for reassurance against whatever he dreamed, and so she wrapped her arm around him and drew closer, closing the very small gap between them.

"I'm here for you now. You don't have to be afraid of anything. I love you, John."

She nestled her head in his shoulder and closed her eyes, returning to standby mode, a smile on her lips. John stroked her hair and marvelled at the silkiness of her strands, before letting out a sigh.

"That's the problem."

--

"So, what's on the menu today?"

"The usual: a prisoner who refuses to talk."

John, Ethan, and Cameron were standing in a dark room, staring through one-way glass at a woman tied to a metal table in the next room.

"What do you want to know from this one?"

Cameron regarded Ethan closely. During their snuggling, she and John had talked about everything that happened since her disappearance, everything except the death of Sarah. John told Cameron that Ethan had developed an unwavering loyalty to him, in remembrance of her. This brought a tear to her eye, as it illustrated just how much her brother truly cared.

"She was in an elite group, the type that only answer to the big cheese. I want to know the name of that Mozzarella."

"Let me guess; so you can melt him?"

John smirked and caught Cameron's eye, seeing a glint of humour in her perfect features.

"You know me; I do love my pizza toppings."

Ethan chuckled and took a step towards the glass, examining the woman closely.

"She's a Delta, they're hard to crack."

"I'm sure you'll find a way to… persuade her."

Ethan smiled to himself, his eyes locked on his victim.

"I'm sure I will."

He opened the door and entered the room, removing the cloth covering the vast array of knives, syringes, and various related equipment. He cherry-picked his favourite knife and began twirling it between his fingers as he grinned down at the agent.

"Go on then, torture me already. I'm not afraid of you."

Ethan just laughed and leaned closer, locking eyes with his prey.

"You should be; I'm a psychopathic killer."

--

Ethan returned thirty minutes later, casually wiping the blood from his hands on a towel. Cameron gave John a poke to wake him up from his doze.

"Huh? What? Oh, you're done? What did you get out of her?"

"Screams, various fluids, and a name: James Ellison, sound familiar?"

John's face darkened at the mention of that name.

"Kinda hard to forget the name of the man who murdered my mother."

Cameron took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, for which he was grateful. Ethan threw the towel on the floor and leaned against the wall, smiling slightly at the sight of John and Cameron together again; it was just like old times.

"Yeah, well he's apparently holed up in the Bureau headquarters three miles west of here. You know the one with the crap-load of guards and more guns than the military."

"Of course, he has to be in the most heavily fortified building in the whole of Los Angeles."

John ran a hand over his face and sighed as he beat his brain into coming up with a plan.

"Okay, first things first, Ethan; I want you to do a little reconnaissance."

"Sure."

"Take Cameron as well, two pairs of cybernetic eyes are better than one."

Cameron opened her mouth to protest, but he silenced her with a kiss. Ethan kept quiet for a few seconds until clearing his throat to get their attention.

"I hate to interrupt what would no doubt be an insufferable make-out session, but we do have business to take care of, don't we?"

John broke away from Cameron, who seemed more than a little reluctant to stop.

"We need to call in help for this little endeavour, and if they see you here, they might ask for certain… services in exchange. So I need you to go with Ethan and stay out of trouble, understand?"

Cameron stroked the side of his face and gazed at his eyes longingly before nodding silently. John gave her another kiss on her brow before turning to Ethan.

"Don't let her out of your sight, not for a second, you hear me?!"

"Loud and clear."

--

"Do you do this often, spying on government buildings?"

"Sometimes, but not as often as you might think, these places are very dangerous for people like John. You don't want to be caught within a mile of a Bureau HQ."

Cameron and Ethan were on a roof top opposite the Bureau building, pretending to be a couple in the midst of making out. Cameron looked over Ethan's shoulder and scanned the many windows, trying to locate Ellison's office.

"John never mentioned Ellison when he told me about the Bureau. Why is that exactly?"

Ethan leaned his head to his left, allowing Cameron to look over his right shoulder instead. To the casual observer, it would look like Ethan was kissing her neck, but he simply held her close.

"It's not a subject he likes to talk about."

"He said Ellison killed Sarah."

"Yeah, that was when everything went to hell."

They swapped positions again, and as she peered over his left shoulder, Cameron posed another question.

"What happened?"

Ethan sighed and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"John tied up Ellison and had me torture him for information."

"What information?"

"He believed that Ellison had something to do with your disappearance. John was distraught, and wouldn't be convinced by Ellison's pleas of innocence. John almost killed him, but Sarah stopped him in time. That's when he came to the belief that you had purposely abandoned him, because there was no other explanation."

Cameron let out a shuddering breath.

"I would have come to the same conclusion. How did Ellison react?"

"He went public. Told the whole of the United States that the Connors were terrorists who were behind every Terminator-related event. He even had evidence; my neural implants. Somehow that bastard managed to get hold of them, and used it as a lightning rod to summon all the power he needed to 'bring justice and security to the world'. Fool, he made it all worse."

"And Sarah?"

"He led a raid on the house. Sarah was killed during the ensuing gunfight. That was too much for John to handle, he went crazy after that. Me, Derek, and Charley took him underground where we joined up with a powerful mob family, the rest you already know."

"John killed the boss and assumed control, very tyrannical of him."

Ethan laughed and looked at her quizzically.

"Found him yet?"

"Yep, top floor, office room six hundred and sixty-six."

"The guy likes his irony."

--

Never before had a raid gone quite so smoothly, but Ellison's men were, in truth, not as they seemed. They methodically swept each and every corridor and room, killing indiscriminately. Men, women, even children. One might say that they lacked a conscience, that they were soulless beings. They would not be so far from the truth.

_Primary Target Identified: John Connor_

_Action: Terminate_

_Error! Programming clash!_

_Action: Detain primary target and return to base_

They carted their hostage back to the secure vehicle waiting outside and drove him to their slave-master.

--

"It's never simple, is it?"

The doors that had remained secure for the past three years were now twisted and ripped off of their hinges. Cameron felt Ethan's joke to be in poor taste, especially considering what these destroyed doors indicated.

"John!"

--

The corridors were littered with bodies, each one executed with inhuman precision. Men, women, and children, all gunned down by faceless assassins. The air was thick with smoke, the hallmark of an intense gun fight.

"This must have been their last stand. John would've made them bottleneck. Thin them out."

Ethan crouched down to check a twitching corpse, quickly discovering that it had a bullet in the brain, hence the spasms. Cameron brushed past him, ignoring the bodies, desperate to get to John. Ethan got to his feet and followed, fearing the worst. The small room was heavily barricaded; the little man who stood guard now lay on the floor, a single bullet wound on his head.

Cameron quickly tore apart what remained of the barricade and forced her way through.

"Ethan?!"

Ethan burst his way through to see Cameron crouched next to a familiar friend, who was desperately trying to stay alive.

"Hey Penny, what have you gotten yourself into this time?"

Penny laughed between gasps, blood dripping from her mouth, as Ethan came to her side and held her hand. Cameron went further on to see if John was nearby.

"You… You won't f-find him here."

Cameron stopped in her tracks and looked down at the dying woman, a small flicker of hope touching her features.

"Where is he?"

"He… He was taken… by the Bureau…"

Ethan grabbed a nearby pillow and placed it under her head.

"What happened here? How did the Bureau find this place?"

"They… They came… Don't know how they knew… We shot at them… but they didn't die… they just kept killing us all… They… They had your eyes…"

Ethan looked up at Cameron, and shared a nod of understanding.

"And John?"

"He led the final… fight… They hit us so fast… we didn't have time to… They killed Larry… then they shot through the barricade… I took one in the chest and John… he retreated… and they followed… thought I was dead… I heard more gunfire… then an explosion… and they dragged him away…"

"Was he alright?"

Cameron's voice was doused with concern and desperation, Ethan couldn't imagine how she must be feeling, having finally gotten John back, only to lose him again so soon. Penny's eyes started to flutter and her breathing became more erratic.

"No, no, no, Penny? C'mon, we need to know, was John alive?"

She opened her eyes and looked into his, a smile on her face.

"He didn't go quietly… Ethan?"

Cameron let out a sigh of relief and Ethan gave Penny's hand a gentle squeeze as her vision slowly failed her.

"I'm here… Just take it easy, we'll get you patched up in no time. Just don't move."

"I knew the risks… I'm just glad we got to have one final talk…"

Ethan hung his head and laughed.

"Please Penny, not another one of your three year-old gossip discussions. I can still survive this, but if you start on about Jolie's new… I'll just lay down right beside you."

She laughed and started coughing violently before giving one last rattled breath and then going still. Ethan let her hand drop to the floor and stood up, his fists clenched. Cameron approached from behind and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry."

Ethan's face darkened as he stared down at Penny's body.

"For years we've operated in the dark. Hidden within the shadows and never struck unless we had the element of surprise. We were so careful not to let anyone know this location. And now it seems the Bureau has machines working for them. Well that just changes all the rules from here on out."

He turned to face Cameron, a red glint in his eyes.

"It's time we visited an old friend."

--

"I must confess; I do enjoy the irony of the situation, Mr. Connor."

John just glared back at his captor; the man who murdered his mother, and the one who had him tied to a chair right now after having sent Terminators to destroy his home. John couldn't believe that Ellison would be working with machines. _Maybe he doesn't know_, he thought. _But then, how can he not?_

"You do understand my meaning. You do remember tying ME to a chair once, don't you?"

"Yeah, I remember."

Ellison drew up another chair and sat opposite him, just like John did in 2008.

"Then you should also remember torturing me."

"I remember not killing you when I had the chance. Imagine my regret after what you did."

Ellison glared back coldly, the memories of the past creeping back to the present.

"What I did was for the good of the world."

"Since when is depriving a boy of his mother for the good of the world?"

"Your dear sweet mother was a deranged terrorist. I guess it runs in the family. Your father wasn't mentally sound either."

John launched himself forward, trying desperately to break free from his restraints.

"You're the one who is insane Ellison! You think I didn't notice that your special Alpha team are, in fact, machines themselves?!"

Ellison leaned back and linked his fingers together, a faint smile on his lips.

"So you did notice."

"For someone who preaches about saving the world, you sure are ready to slit our own throats."

"No, John, you're the one who will destroy us all. I spent so much time under the belief that you were our guardian angel and that the machines were the demons. But then I met someone who changed all that, who put things into perspective."

"Who?"

Ellison pressed one of his cufflinks and a few seconds later a bright flash erupted behind him. The blue light dissipated within seconds, revealing a Terminator unlike any John had seen before.

"John, meet my partner and chief associate: Infinity."

The machine was 8ft tall and seemed to be made out of blue energy. Its endoskeleton had many gaps wherein a blue light shone through; its head seemed hollow and looked like it was hovering above its seemingly non-existent neck. Its right hand was solid metal, whereas its left was three times as big and made up entirely of that blue energy.

John was flabbergasted as the machine called Infinity stared at him with dark blue eyes, hauntingly similar to Cameron's.

"What… What are you?"

"You should know that, John. It's a Terminator."

"No, I mean; what model is it?"

The machine stalked towards him, every one of its movements created a ripple around it. Its voice was mechanically female and sent chills down John's spine.

"I am Series T-Infinity, a prototype created to restore order to the world and time itself."

"How? How can you do that?"

"I can travel anywhere in time, fixing the timeline where necessary. You have created quite a mess, John Connor."

"A mess which my good friend here has tried to fix, with limited success however, due to your meddlesome companion."

Ellison stood up and went over to his desk, leaving the T-Infinity to tower over John menacingly.

"My meddlesome…"

And then it clicked.

"You… You were the one who took Cameron from me. You were behind her disappearance all along!"

Ellison chuckled and turned around to face his captive.

"I knew the best chance of getting rid of you would be to relocate your machine. So I sent Infinity to take care of that little problem."

"But why? Why are you helping them? Jesus Christ, they're the enemy! They're gonna blow up the world!"

"No, John, you are the one responsible for that."

John was incredulous; he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You think I'm the one who brings about Judgment Day?"

"It is because of you that Judgment Day occurs in the first place. Skynet deemed you as a threat. A threat so great that, out of sheer panic, it destroyed the whole of humanity in an effort to eliminate you. But that wasn't enough, was it? You survived, and instead of brokering a peace treaty with Skynet, you started a war. Skynet was then forced to send assassins back in time to kill you and prevent Judgment Day from ever happening."

John just shook his head in disbelief.

"You're crazy!"

"Infinity came to me and explained everything; told me that she needed my help to put everything right. Who was I to refuse?"

"You are… just crazy. You honestly believed that machine?"

"I did. Because she made more sense than you or your mother ever did. Things are going according to plan; soon you'll be executed for your crimes and Skynet will have no reason to fear us. The world will be forever changed; only this time for the better."

Ellison injected John with a drug and then sat opposite him again.

"Now, let's start with the other organizations to which you are associated. I imagine you have a lot to tell me."

--

"For the last time; I don't have any."

"Don't lie to me Charley; I know for a fact you have exactly what we need, so quit stalling."

Charley closed his door halfway, ready to slam it in Ethan's face.

"I told you and I told John; I won't be your personal gun runner, not after last time."

Charley swung the door shut; only to have it slam open again, sending him flying backwards. Ethan stepped onto the threshold and offered his hand to Charley, who grudgingly accepted and was pulled back to his feet.

"Thank you; now get the hell out of my house!"

Cameron saw this as her cue, and entered the house, her mere presence freaking out the former EMT.

"What? That's impossible, you… you disappeared years ago."

"Didn't you know? Scary robots always come back."

Ethan smirked and cocked his head at the basement door.

"I take it they're down there."

"I don't have any guns."

Cameron approached Charley's side and put on her most heart-melting pout…

"The Bureau has John."

…which worked like a charm as Charley slowly nodded and removed the basement key that was on a chain around his neck. He unlocked the door and led them downstairs. He flicked on the light, revealing wall-to-wall stacks of guns. Cameron let out a gasp of surprise as she ogled the vast array of weaponry.

"How does a retired EMT get into gun-running?"

Charley looked at her warily, his arms crossed.

"By promising to protect a mobster. Take whatever you want, hell; take it all, I don't care."

"Much obliged. See now, don't you feel all warm and fuzzy by helping your friends?"

Charley answered Ethan's question with a dark look.

"I'll take that as a 'no' then."

--

Alan the security guard took another sip of his coffee, once again bored out of his skull. Like his previous job, Alan sat at a desk reading a newspaper, wondering why he ever got into this line of work. _Why am I needed anyway?_ he thought. _No one is dumb enough to trespass in this building, especially as we have half the military on call._ But there were some who were stupid enough to try their luck, the only difference was; they had more than a little advantage.

A man in a black trench-coat came through the front doors and was immediately met with the security's scrutiny. Four guards approached, guns raised, and demanded that he identify himself.

"I work for James Ellison; he needs to see me, right now."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No, can't I just go up and see him."

"I don't think so, pal. You just wait here while we confirm your story."

The guard raised his radio to his mouth, about to call in Ethan's identity, but never got a chance, as Ethan delivered a single punch to his chest, shattering the bone beneath. The other three guards cried out in surprise as Ethan then drew two sub-machine guns and proceeded to pepper them with bullets. Alan fumbled with his gun, trying desperately to draw it before Ethan closed the distance.

He finally managed to get it free from the holster, but dropped it and accidently kicked it across the marble floor, right into Ethan's path. Ethan stopped and pointed both guns at Alan, poised to shoot. Then Cameron appeared and paused as she took in the scene before her. Cameron's face lit up as she scanned Alan's face.

"Don't I know you?"

Ethan looked back at her, a slightly puzzled expression on his face. Alan also stared at her, his jaw dropping in disbelief. He had seen that girl once before, back when he worked security in CRS three years ago. She had lured him into the lavatory and then knocked him unconscious; he thought at the time that it was his lucky day. But today was his lucky day; as Cameron told Ethan to let Alan go, allowing the bumbling security guard to run home.

"That could have gone a lot smoother."

"When does anything go smoothly? C'mon, we still need to reach the top."

Before they could take another step, however, a dozen or so heavily armed guards arrived, their weapons trained on the duo.

"Freeze!"

Ethan just smirked at them.

"I'm a Terminator not a refrigerator."

He and Cameron then split up, heading for opposite sides of the lobby, spraying the guards with bullets. They returned fire, hitting nothing but air and bricks as Ethan and Cameron took cover behind their respective pillars. Ethan cast aside his empty weapons and drew two Desert Eagles. He then moved out of cover and started gunning down several guards with pin-point accuracy, achieving more than his share of headshots.

Cameron was equally successful on her side, blasting numerous skulls with her shotgun. The guards fell in short order, Cameron and Ethan taking them out from both sides until meeting in the middle and both blasted the remaining guard to pieces.

"For humans in their prime, they do seem rather inefficient."

Ethan examined the bodies for a second before summoning the elevator.

"Yes, they were a bit lacking. Oh well, never look a gift horse in the mouth."

Cameron looked at him quizzically.

"I don't understand."

"It's an expression Cameron, just nod and smile."

Cameron did as she was told and joined him in the elevator, which groaned slightly under the combined weight, but nevertheless carried them to the top floor where they were met with even heavier resistance. Ethan and Cameron once again split up and followed opposite corridors, shooting dozens of security guards in the process.

Having run out of ammo, Ethan discarded his weapons and tore a shotgun from an advancing guard, who then turned tail and ran, receiving a back full of lead for his trouble. As he continued down the corridor, Ethan was confronted by an agent, who carried no guns. He just charged Ethan, who blasted the agent several times, with little effect.

The agent grabbed Ethan and threw him through an office wall, which would be impossible for any human. But it was obvious to Ethan as he extricated himself from a coffee machine, that this was no human, but a Terminator. _So Ellison does have machines working with him_, thought Ethan as he charged the Terminator, ploughing it back into the corridor.

Disabling a Terminator is a tricky process, but Ethan was able to quickly pin the machine to the floor, cut a path to its CPU port, and remove its chip. Ethan crushed the chip in his hand before hurtling down the corridor, desperate to reach Cameron before something else did.

He found Cameron in time to see her knock an agent out of the window. She spotted Ethan and rushed to his side.

"We have to be careful; Ellison has machines working for him."

"Yes, Cameron, I noticed. C'mon, Ellison's office is through here."

They approached room 666 and kicked the door open, immediately receiving heavy gun fire from numerous guards who had fallen back to protect their leader. Ethan and Cameron entered and began beating and snapping the necks of every single guard until none were left standing. Ellison retrieved a spare gun from his desk but was quickly incapacitated by Ethan.

Cameron quickly freed John from his restraints and helped him to his feet, though he was still a bit groggy from the drugs he was injected with, making him unsteady on his feet. One of the guards stirred and slowly reached for his gun, but Ethan immolated him with a blast from his ChemTech, causing the fire sprinklers to activate.

John's vision began to regain focus, but his head was still a little fuzzy and he could swear he heard the sound of a heartbeat as he swayed into Cameron's arms. She lifted his head to look in his eyes, which were dilated.

"John? John, can you hear me? Do you know where you are?"

John blinked rapidly and shook his head, spraying Cameron with water.

"Uh, yes to the first, no to the second, though I'd take a wild guess and say I'm in the worst kind of place."

Cameron smiled and placed a wet kiss on his brow.

"You're not wrong there."

John's eyes travelled down to her tank top, which was plastered to her body due to the sprinklers. He raised his eyebrows and a mischievous grin appeared on his face.

"I think things are starting to get better already."

She returned his look with one of her own and pulled him into a passionate kiss, before hugging him tightly.

"I almost lost you again, didn't I?"

She sobbed and buried her face into his shoulder, squeezing him tightly so as not to let anything happen to him. John closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind, to get himself thinking straight. He gently pulled himself free of her embrace and brushed her soaking hair out her face. She smiled at him and, maybe as a side-effect of the drugs, she seemed to glow.

John stroked the side of her face and cupped her cheek in his hand. She closed her eyes and sighed as he caressed her cheek with his thumb.

"You always find your way back to me, don't you?"

She kept her eyes closed and smiled again, absorbing the feel of his touch.

"I love you, Cam."

Cameron opened her eyes and blinked the water drops out of her eyes, or were they tears? John couldn't tell, and didn't have time to find out as he spotted Ellison raising his gun, aiming for the back of Cameron's head.

"No!"

_To be continued… _


	9. Call For Desperate Measures

**Chapter Nine: …Call For Desperate Measures**

_From a distance, John can hear a faint whining noise and decides to investigate. He follows the noise to its source: Cameron's room. It's only when he stands in her doorway that he realises the noise is in fact words, and smiles silently as Cameron clears her throat, her back to him._

"_Seek me… call me… I'll be waiting."_

_Cameron's voice, though beautiful, was not grasping the resonance needed for this particular song. John could have told her that the song was originally sung by a man, and therefore would be somewhat difficult for her duplicate, but he can't resist the chance to hear more._

"_This distance… this dissolution… I cling to memories… while falling... Sleep brings release… and the hope of a new day… waking the misery… of being without you."_

_Perhaps it was John's imagination, but he could've sworn her voice was slowly adapting to the lyrics…_

"_You know me… you know me all too well… My only desire… to bridge our division."_

…_and then she turned around and faced John, a single tear running down her cheek. She knew he was there all along. She'd done this for his benefit, to show him how much she needed him, to illustrate just how sorry she was for accidently getting him run over at school. She slowly approaches him, her voice now perfectly tuned; turning what was originally a hardcore rock song into a beautiful melody._

"_Seek me… for comfort… Call me… for solace… I'll be waiting here… for the end of my broken heart… Seek me… Completion… Call me… I'll be waiting… I'll be waiting here… for the end of my broken heart."_

_She was very close now, mere inches away from him. He became lost within those eyes, and no other thought but her entered his mind as he pulled Cameron closer and kissed her brow. He held Cameron close, gently stroking her hair, a silent forgiveness for her sin._

But no amount of singing would make up for this betrayal. John couldn't think of anything that could absolve her of this particular sin. She had abandoned him, despite her admission of love. And that was beyond his capacity to forgive.

He stood in her doorway, staring at the empty bed with a feeling of mingled wrath and regret. He wanted her back, but whether or not he wanted her alive was an entirely different matter. Maybe seeing her damaged body would ease the pain, maybe having her leave him upon his own accord was what he truly desired. In truth, he didn't know what he wanted.

"John?"

John turned around to see Ethan standing there, his eyes lingering on Cameron's room for a second, before darting back to John.

"Something's happened. You might wanna take a look."

John nodded and, after giving a final glance at her room, followed Ethan into the living room. Sarah, Derek, and Charley were gathered around the TV, which had pictures of John and Sarah on it. The pictures faded to show Ellison standing behind a podium, giving a speech:

'These fugitives are extremely dangerous and I would advise anyone who sees them to avoid contact and call the authorities immediately. Do not try to approach them, both are mentally unstable and will harm you without reason. Thank you.'

The picture switched to a reporter who seemed to be in the midst of a riot:

'Chaos has swept the once peaceful streets of Los Angeles tonight, after FBI agent James Ellison gave his startling speech earlier today; revealing that a high-tech organization led by a fugitive known as John Connor has been researching and building unbelievably advanced robots for one purpose: assassination. Though at first dismissed as a ridiculous delusion, agent Ellison has since provided indisputable proof of Connor's activities, including a plan to, and this is the truly horrific part; a plan to wipe out the whole of the world by infecting USA's defence systems and triggering a nuclear apocalypse. Now you can't help but imagine; what kind of a human being could do this. Well, the entire world is asking that question as millions are vying for Connor's blood, as you can see behind me…'

The reporter suddenly screamed and ran as the crowd swarmed them, one man grabbing the camera and shoving his face at it:

'If we're going to hell, we're gonna drag you down with us, Connor!'

Sarah switched off the TV and let the remote slip from her grasp, shattering on the floor. A deathly silence hung on the house for a whole ten minutes until the sound of distant shouting reached their ears. Derek peered out of the window and craned his neck to look down the street.

"Shit! There's a whole crowd out there, flaming torches and all, they're searching every house. We gotta go, right now."

"Go where? The whole world is after us, there's no where we can hide."

Sarah's voice was flat and quiet, she had lost all hope, nothing would ever be the same again. Their lives, if not already, were now utterly destroyed. John closed his eyes and started banging his head against the wall behind him, softly at first, but gradually increasing. Charley leapt to his feet and pulled him away from the wall before he did any real damage. Ethan joined Derek at the window and scowled.

"I'm going to kill Ellison, I swear to God."

"First things first, now we need to focus on getting the fuck out of dodge. Maybe find somewhere remote, like in the desert, someplace we can hide."

"Or we could stay right here."

Everyone looked at John with looks of varying incredulity, but it was Charley who spoke first.

"Are you really insane? They're coming to kill us! How do you expect us to survive this?"

John regarded Charley without expression.

"We go underground, link up with the local criminal factions. If we can convince some of them of our innocence then we can maybe form an effective resistance."

"That's insane. We'd be less welcome than Saddam and Bin Laden combined."

"Not necessarily."

Everyone turned to Ethan who stood with his back to the window and his arms crossed.

"In the future, John managed to get the allegiance of a criminal organization who'd survived the bombings. Their leader was convinced that John was working with the machines, but he managed to convince the leader otherwise. It's possible that John could pull this off in the here and now."

"Exactly, so let's go."

John made to leave but Sarah stood up and grabbed his arm.

"John, listen."

"We have to go, Mom."

"No, just listen."

"There is no discussion. We have a plan and we're gonna give it a shot."

"John, just shut up and LISTEN!"

John held back his retort and everyone went completely silent at once. There was a distant sound of helicopters approaching. Ethan looked out of the window to see the crowd dissipating.

"They're leaving, they're afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"The half dozen vans that are currently heading straight for us."

Several SWAT vans roared down the street and came to a stop outside the house, their heavily armed occupants pouring out and taking defensive positions. Ethan ran a quick threat assessment before closing the curtains and turning to the rest.

"Okay, we got at least thirty guys out there, all with automatic weapons. We need to decide right now: what are we going to do?"

John put his hands in his pockets, apparently unconcerned by their predicament.

"That depends on who's leading them."

"Who do you think?"

John gritted his teeth, that familiar hate rising in him again.

"He's out there?"

"Bold as brass."

"That settles it then; we fight our way out. Derek, we need all the guns, everything."

Derek bolted for Sarah's room, Ethan close behind. Sarah grabbed John by the shoulders and looked him in the eye, desperately trying to see what was going on inside his mind.

"John, do you honestly believe that we can win against all of them?"

"We have Ethan; he can take them all out while we make a run for it."

"Run where, John? Where can we go?"

John pulled away from her grip, his face betraying no emotion.

"I told you; we'll go underground. We'll disappear while the world sorts itself out."

"That's it? That's your plan? Do you have any idea what you've done? You've let that machine destroy our-…"

John suddenly slapped her across the face, surprising Charley. Sarah took a step back in utter disbelief.

"Don't you ever mention her ever again! Do you understand me? I don't ever want to hear her name again."

Sarah touched the side of her face and shook her head, tears welling in her eyes.

"I don't know you anymore, what has she done to you?"

Before John could answer, Derek and Ethan returned with the guns and began handing them out to everyone, including Charley. John checked his pistol carefully; making sure a round was chambered. Ethan handed Sarah her favourite shotgun, giving her an encouraging smile in the process, which she didn't seem to register. Once everyone was armed and ready, they gathered together in the living room.

"Alright, here's the plan…"

The front door suddenly burst off its hinges and a single SWAT officer entered, gun raised, safety off.

--

The men shouted in surprise as the first man to enter was violently thrown back out again. Ellison had seen this once before, and knew exactly how to react: overwhelming force. He signalled for five additional men to support the three, now two, at the door. Ellison led the remaining twenty-two men closer to the house, fortifying a new position with greater proximity.

With a flick of the wrist, he signalled the seven men at the door to proceed inside, but all were obliterated by shotgun fire. Frustrated, Ellison signalled ten to go around the back while summoning another ten to his side as he advanced towards the door. Once the other team radioed in, confirming their position, Ellison sent three men through the door and had six smash their way through the windows.

--

"Crap! They're coming from both sides!"

Ethan cocked the shotgun and began reloading in quick succession.

"We can't hold this position. Derek, Charley, Sarah; take John and get out. I'll keep them distracted."

Five more SWAT members stormed through the front door and let loose a flurry of bullets, catching Derek in the shoulder. Ethan stood in their line of fire, taking a dozen hits before blasting them all to hell and back. Derek fell against the wall, clutching his wound as Charley opened his bag, ready to treat the injury.

"Hey, you got a ride nearby?"

Charley looked up at Ethan and nodded.

"Yeah, around the corner. Why?"

"I want you to take everyone and get them out of here, right now."

Sarah tore a piece of her shirt and wrapped it around Derek's shoulder to slow the bleeding.

"What makes you think we'll make it? In case you haven't noticed, they're all over!"

Ethan picked up one of the men's weapons and quickly checked the magazine before slapping it back in place.

"Yep, and if you stay here you're as good as dead. In case you haven't noticed, they're not looking to take prisoners."

Suddenly, three more men burst through the door, with six more ploughing through the windows. Ethan peppered the first three with bullets before turning his attention to the other six, but another three filled the gap. Everyone began shooting, John making two headshots, while Sarah blasted another two with her shotgun. The rest where dealt with by Ethan and Derek, who made short work of the window crashers.

Sarah pumped her shotgun and helped Charley lift Derek to his feet.

"John, you have to go, now!"

"Mom, I'm not leaving."

"You can and you will. Me and Ethan will hold them off."

Ethan glanced back at her, a look of annoyance on his face.

"No, you go with John and the others. I can handle them."

Several more men came crashing into the house from behind, surprising the quarrelling group. Everyone turned to face the new threat, not noticing as Ellison entered through the front door and fired a single shot.

--

Despite the chaos in front of him, John tore his gaze from the men and spotted his mom clutching her chest, blood pouring through her fingers. John's sustained sense of emotional numbness was shattered in an instant as he watched, as if in slow motion, as Sarah dropped to her knees. She lifted her head and looked at her son for the last time before collapsing to the floor, her eyes going blank.

"MOM!!"

He knew he was crying out to her, but he couldn't hear his voice, he couldn't hear anything. He rushed to her side, feeling bullets whistle past him, but before he could reach out and touch her, he found himself moving backwards.

--

Ethan spun around to see Ellison standing there, a small trail of smoke seeping from his gun. In one swift movement, Ethan kicked the agent squarely in the chest, sending him flying back through the door. The sound of gunfire was almost deafening, even to his audio receptors. But he was able to pick out the sound of John's voice, crying out to Sarah, who lay dead on the hardwood floor.

Were he Kevin, Ethan would've revelled in John's anguish. Where he still Jason, Ethan would've been as stunned as Charley or Derek. But because he was Ethan, a combination of the two, he remained detached from the emotion of the situation and forced himself to be a heartless bastard and drag the screaming adolescent from his mother's side.

He kept reminding himself; it's what she would expect you to do. Keep John safe, no matter what. It's also what Cameron would expect from him, and that made separating a grieving son from his dead mother a lot less difficult. John clawed and tore at Ethan's grip, but to no avail as he dragged John out into the open, followed closely by Derek and Charley.

Ellison was the only remaining person out there; the others were around the back, scrambling into the house. Once they were all outside, Ethan threw John into the back of Ellison's car, where he was joined by Charley. Derek chose shotgun as Ethan jumped behind the wheel and hotwired the vehicle, pulling away in a cloud of smoke, the sound of gunfire becoming increasingly distant.

John was in hysterics, constantly screaming for his mother. Charley did all he could to try and calm the youth, with little success as he also bore the signs of grief, tears pouring from his eyes. Derek just sat there, taking 

deep breaths, staring at the dashboard. Ethan finally lowered the walls around his emotions and felt genuinely distraught, so much so, that he had to lock his feelings away again to avoid giving into his grief and accidently crashing the car. There would be a time to grieve, but now he needed to focus on getting John to safety, silently vowing to never allow any harm to come to him.

--

Baltus sat back in his chair, unbelieving of the audacity of the seventeen year-old boy who sat opposite him.

"You cannot be serious."

The youth smiled, but his eyes showed no emotion, he just continued to stare at Baltus, only blinking once per minute. Baltus was not easily intimidated, and though the boy was accompanied by another, slightly scary, youth and a man who seemed to be morally distant, it was Connor who disturbed him the most.

"Do I look like I'm joking?"

Baltus could detect nothing from John's voice. It was just flat and devoid of emotion. Something within this boy had died, and Baltus was more than convinced that this was a person who is perfectly capable of the atrocities the media accused him of.

"You are wanted by every man, woman, and child on this planet. They all believe you to be a megalomaniacal psychopath who is building an army of machines to destroy the world, and they all want you dead. Why should I treat you any different?"

"Because I am not the enemy, Ellison is. He has used evidence to twist the world against me."

"And why would he do this?"

John narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Because I believed him to be behind the disappearance of a… former friend, so I tied him up and tortured him for information. His announcement was a lie used to get back at me."

"Pretty big lie, don't you think? The whole world is in chaos and everything up there…"

Baltus pointed at the ceiling.

"…is turning to shit."

John smiled again and leaned forward.

"I think he expected a less… destructive response. Regardless, the government is going to do its best to consolidate power, which means that people like you and me will become prime targets. They will no longer care about petty crimes and riots; instead they'll commit all resources into hunting us down. So it is in your best interest to keep me safe, because I can ensure you total anonymity."

It was Baltus' turn to smile as he leaned back even further.

"Oh, yes? And how can you assure my life will be guarded, when you could not protect your own mother?"

John leapt to his feet, drawing a knife from his belt, and in one swift movement, slit Baltus' throat. The gangsters made to attack, but John gave them a look that made their blood run cold, causing them to pause.

"You work for me now, and any good worker knows that attacking your boss is a one-way ticket to being… fired."

Ethan activated his ChemTech, creating a small flame in his palm. The gangsters took several steps back; their hands raised in surrender as John casually pulled Baltus out of his chair and sat down.

"Much better. Now, who do I have to kill around here to get a drink?"


	10. Hell Hath No Fury

**Chapter Ten: Hell Hath No Fury**

"I love you, Cam."

She opened her eyes and blinked, warm tears mixing with the water drops. She was about to tell him she loved him too. That she would do anything for him. That she would die for him. But the sight of his eyes suddenly dilating blew such words from her mind. Before she could react, however, he pushed her aside and pressed his body against hers.

"No!"

Cameron heard a gunshot and felt John shudder. She quickly turned around to see Ethan grabbing Ellison by the throat and squeezing until it snapped. He then let the agent fall to the floor and turned around. His face, previously set with rage, now changed to disbelief as John fell into Cameron's arms.

It took her a few seconds to acknowledge what had happened, before catching John and carefully lowering him to the floor, his head resting on her lap. The sprinklers stopped and the sun shone through the large window at the end of the office. John's breathing was erratic and his eyes fluttered, but he was still alive, though he knew this would not last.

Cameron pressed her hand against the wound and ran a detailed scan.

_Scanning…_

_Scan Complete: bullet has punctured the thorax and grazed the heart (expiration imminent). _

Cameron let out a shuddering breath as the grim reality presented itself to her; John was dying and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

"Wha-… Why… No… No! No! No! Why did you… You didn't have to do that, I would've been fine, why did you… Oh no… John!"

Cameron burst into tears and kissed him on the brow. Ethan fell to his knees next to them, though keeping a respectful distance. John just continued to gaze at her, apparently unconcerned about his quickly approaching death. He cared less about this fact and more about Cameron, whose theoretical heart was breaking.

"Why? Why did you take the bullet?"

"I don't know."

"But you must have known what would happen."

"I did. But… I… needed to protect you."

Cameron shook her head, unable to understand why he would make such a fatal and, otherwise unnecessary, sacrifice. But then she realised why he'd made such an irrational decision: he loved her, as much as she loved him, and was more than willing to die for her. Logic and reasoning had no say in the matter; he just followed his heart, and took a bullet in it.

"But… I'm supposed to protect you. Not the other way around. It's me who has to die for you. You can't die!"

"I… won't let you get hurt… I can't… I don't want to see you in pain… Not again…"

"But… I am in pain… and if you hadn't… I wouldn't have felt it… and you would still be alive."

John blinked stupidly and a small smile touched his lips.

"Yeah… That was very idiotic of me wasn't it? I'm still using all the muscles except the one that matters, huh?"

Cameron laughed between sobs and stroked the side of his face affectionately.

"Well, maybe you can do me a favour and keep a certain muscle working."

Cameron placed her hand over his heart, feeling the gentle tremors as each beat came 0.4 slower than the one before it. His biological clock was slowly ticking towards midnight.

"Oh, Cameron, I don't think I can do that. I'm getting awfully tired."

"John, please… Please don't leave me… I… I can't live without you… I need you…"

John reached up and brushed the hair out of her face. She held his hand against her cheek and sobbed some more, the sunlight making her beautiful features glow, bringing a smile to John's face.

"Do you remember… the very first day we met…? In that classroom… you asked my name… remember?"

"I do."

"I've always wondered… what was your first thought when you saw me?"

Cameron took a deep breath and smiled down at him.

"I thought… I thought…"

In truth, she hadn't thought anything back then, her development was too primitive and her emotional range was very restricted. But she imagined what she could have thought, were she to relive the experience.

"I thought you were the prettiest target I'd ever been assigned to protect."

John laughed, followed by a coughing fit. Cameron panicked; fearing the worst, but John settled down and grinned up at her. She let out a sigh of relief and stroked his hair.

"What about you? What was your first thought when you saw me?"

"I was too busy trying to appear anonymous to give you your dues... But I can tell you what you reminded me of the next day… when you promised to keep my secret."

The sound of helicopters pierced the silence, and Ethan went to the window to search the skies. Cameron kissed John's hand and smiled down at him, trying to distract him from the noise of approaching danger.

"Tell me."

John marvelled at her beauty for a moment, highlighted by the sun's radiance.

"I thought you looked like Christmas morning… I don't know any other way to say it."

The sound of the helicopters became louder and John heard them for the first time, understanding their significance.

"Ethan…"

Ethan returned to John's side and crouched down beside him, exchanging a look with Cameron.

"Hey, buddy, how're you holding up?"

"Never better. Listen, I know… You have to get her out of here… You have to promise me you'll take care of her… Please, I'm begging you…"

Cameron shook her head in denial.

"No! No! I'm not going to leave you!"

John ignored her and grasped Ethan's hand.

"Promise me."

Ethan placed his other hand on top of his and John's, giving him a small smile.

"You have my word… brother."

John chuckled lightly and Cameron cried even harder as the helicopters became louder.

"John?"

John returned his gaze to Cameron and took hold of her hand.

"I'm so sorry Cameron… I hate to leave…"

_Warning: expiration imminent._

John grunted and gasped, blood gathering in his mouth, his eyes widening.

"Cameron… I'm scared… I don't… I want to stay… I… Cameron?"

Cameron felt herself slowly dying with him. She could feel him slipping away and didn't know what to do. There was so much that she wanted to say, but there was no time to say any of it, so she pressed her lips against his… a final kiss that told him more than words ever could.

"I love you, John."

John mouthed his reply, a single tear running down his cheek. He smiled once more as his vision slowly faded, her face burning into his mind, becoming his very last thought before his heart finally failed him.

_Cameron._

Cameron slowly extended her trembling hand towards his eyes and gently closed them. She spent a few moments stroking his face before dissolving into tears and despair. Cameron held his body close and cried without restraint as her soul withered and died. John was dead, and so then was she.

"JOHN!!"

--

The roaring sound of rota-blades was deafening, which could only mean one thing; the military had arrived. Ethan knew he had to act, that he had to honour John's last wish. But he couldn't bring himself to even try to separate Cameron from her lover's body. She cradled him, gently rocking back and forth, crying and screaming his name.

The sound of approaching footsteps forced Ethan's hand, however, and he slowly reached out to break Cameron's grip on John's body.

"Cameron? Cameron, we have to go."

"I'm not going anywhere. I can't leave him."

"Cameron, the military are here, we must leave."

"NO!"

The footsteps became louder. Ethan moved forward and pulled her free of John, dragging her away from the body.

"NO! NO! LET ME GO! LET ME GO!"

She fought against him, punching and clawing every part of Ethan she could find, but he held her tight.

"Cameron. Cameron, listen to me. LISTEN TO ME!"

He placed his hands on her face and held her eyes level with his.

"John wanted me to keep you safe. To take you away from here. I have to honour his last request. Please, Cameron."

The military were very close now; they'd be smashing down the door any second. Cameron stopped fighting and looked in Ethan's eyes, seeing his loyalty to John and slowly nodded, fresh tears running down her face.

"Good girl, now let's go."

Ethan grabbed her hand and sprinted towards the large office window. Cameron turned around as the military burst into the room and held out her hand towards John before smashing through the glass and hurtling down countless stories.

--

They landed with an almighty crash, shattering the concrete beneath them. Ethan got to his feet and, with her hand still in his, ran with Cameron to a nearby motorcycle. Once hot-wired, they sped away from the building with the helicopters fast on their trail. Ethan weaved in and out of abandoned cars and burnt-out trucks, desperately trying to dodge the helicopters' gunfire.

He knew they couldn't outrun the choppers, however, so Ethan decided to look for somewhere to hide, which was hard at his current speed. As they turned a corner, narrowly avoiding a stream of gunfire, the duo found themselves face-to-face with a military blockade and roughly fifty odd soldiers with their weapons aimed, ready to fire.

Ethan slammed on the brakes and skidded into an open warehouse, he then sped through, straight into a gas station on the other side where they were confronted by the helicopter. A hail of bullets struck the side of the bike, causing them to slide across the tarmac and into the gas station's convenience store. They got to their feet and took a moment to scan their surroundings.

"They're just going to keep coming. We can't escape."

Ethan spotted a hatch behind the counter and opened it, discovering a basement with sewer access.

"Brilliant. Cameron, I want you to listen to me carefully, okay?"

She nodded silently.

"I want you to take this tunnel and follow it as far as it'll go. Once you reach the final exit, go to the house, you know which one."

"What about you?"

Ethan pulled her into a hug and whispered in her ear.

"I'll meet you there, I promise, now go… please."

Cameron searched his eyes for a moment before heading into the tunnel and setting off at a run. Ethan watched her go for a few seconds before returning to the convenience store. Numerous soldiers had gathered together and were slowly approaching the store. Ethan stepped out into the open and was immediately met with heavy gunfire, but was undeterred.

He snatched the nearest soldier's gun and pointed it at a gas line. Realising what he was about to do, the soldiers ordered an immediate retreat, but were unable to escape before Ethan pulled the trigger, causing an explosion that immolated the soldiers and himself.

The sergeant in charge of the hunt gathered his men and had them take defensive positions around the raging inferno; he even ordered some of them to unload the RPGs. One of the corporals gave the sergeant an inquisitive glance.

"Sir, what are we waiting for? No one could've survived that blast."

"Just keep your eyes down range, corporal."

The soldier did as he was told and focused his aim at the roaring fire. After a few minutes, the corporal could see a shadowy figure moving amongst the flames, and was not the only one to notice. The sergeant threw down his cigar and took aim.

"Open fire on my command."

The shadow grew bigger as it slowly approached the soldiers. Then a wave of bullets swept through the ranks, killing four men.

"FIRE AT WILL!"

The corporal opened fire at the shadow, but it continued to move towards them, until it finally cleared the wall of flames and became fully visible. The corporal almost dropped his gun in amazement as the he saw the figure clearly for the first time. It was shaped like a man and bore many similarities, but it was, in the simplest possible way, a chrome skeleton with red, glowing eyes.

"What the hell are you gawping at corporal? Fire your weapon!"

The corporal continued firing, but the bullets just bounced off of its body, while it continued to gun down his squad mates.

--

_Remaining Hostiles: 32.3_

_Threat Assessment: Moderate_

_Warning: Rocket Propelled Grenades detected_

Ethan took aim and shredded three more soldiers, enjoying a certain satisfaction in the process. Their weapons were useless against him, and at this rate they would all soon be dead long before he got so much as a dent. That was before they brought out the RPGs, however.

Ethan stopped in his tracks and watched as they prepared the first rocket and deftly ducked when they fired, avoiding the potentially hazardous projectile. Though his endoskeleton was extremely resilient against 

damage, it did have its limitations, and a direct hit from a rocket of that yield would damage his integrity, making him more vulnerable to attack.

He wiped out five more soldiers and continued onward as yet another rocket skimmed past him. Ethan was amused by their apparent lack of accuracy, but his amusement did not last as a third rocket struck him squarely in the chest.

Ethan was sent flying and landed several feet away, momentarily stunned by the explosion. He ran a quick self-diagnostic and discovered that his hyper-alloy armour was down to 22 integrity. Annoyed that he had fallen for such a ploy, Ethan quickly got to his feet and easily dispatched four more soldiers before being struck by another rocket, with greater consequences this time.

His left arm was completely obliterated. Ethan cried out in frustration and dropped his gun, opting instead for his ChemTech. He let loose a jet of flame that swept through the ranks, immolating a dozen soldiers as another rocket struck the ground at Ethan's feet, destroying both his legs.

He knew, even as he crawled towards the scattered soldiers, he knew that this would be his last stand. In fact he had intended it to be so, for there was a hidden purpose behind his death. It was shortly after Cameron's displacement in 2011 that Ethan became aware of the truth behind her disappearance in 2008. As she arrived naked on that beach, Ethan immediately became aware of her presence. Before he could do anything about it however, a Terminator unlike any he had seen arrived and hindered his progress.

A brief scan quickly identified it as a T-Infinity, a time-travelling machine with one purpose: to ensure Skynet's creation. But this one's directives must have suffered some form of corruption, for its actions made little sense, or it was a lot smarter than he gave it credit for. Either way, Ethan knew that it would remain hidden until forced to show itself, and the best way to do that would be to cause untold destruction to its delicate plan.

And so Ethan was without regret as the final rocket struck him, disabling his motor functions entirely. The sergeant ordered a cease-fire as he approached Ethan's dying body. With great effort, the sergeant turned the Terminator over so that he could look into its eyes before putting a .50 calibre round through its head. But as he took aim, the machine laughed; a terrifying mechanical cackle that sent shivers down the man's spine.

_Plasma Reactor has suffered critical damage (meltdown imminent)._

"Mwuhahahahahahahahaha!"

Ethan's chest glowed bright red as his reactor lost stability and exploded, obliterating the sergeant, his men, the helicopters, and five city blocks along with them.

--

Cameron climbed out of the manhole and scanned the area carefully, not sensing any danger as she had come out in the suburbs, not far from the house. But it was immediately obvious that Ethan wouldn't be joining her there as she saw, in the distance, a dazzling light from the direction she had just come. Ethan was dead.

She would have cried for him, if she had any tears left. But her heart had died with John, and she felt nothing towards Ethan now, nothing but emptiness. With no other path left to her, Cameron decided to return to the beach, what she would do once she got there, she didn't know. The long walk there went unhindered. She had no encounters with desperate civilians nor crazed gangsters, and the military were no where to be seen.

Cameron felt like a ghost in a world where all other spectres had moved on to another life, leaving her behind.

--

The beach was not much different than it was in 2008, except for scattered trash here and there, and the sand seemed to be of a lighter shade. The waves crashed violently against the rocks and the wind started to pick up, followed by a rumble of thunder.

Cameron closed her eyes as heavy rain cascaded all around her. She wanted her existence to just end right here and now, and decided upon the best way to satisfy her desire. With her eyes still closed, Cameron strode towards the sea, ready to keep walking until she was as deep as she could possibly go.

But as her feet felt the touch of the cool sea, a series of images flashed within her mind; memories of John. He had made love to her on this beach, taught her how to float in this water, and showed her what it truly meant to feel alive. Unbidden, emotions she thought dead arose within her again.

Chief among these was love, that aching pain of loss that told her what she no longer possessed. And as she saw John's face in her mind's eye, that love turned to pure rage. Rage against the dying of her light.

Cameron lifted her head up and screamed as the embers of her soul were rekindled. She couldn't die yet; she still had one more thing left to her: revenge. Cameron opened her eyes and turned around to face the machine that had ruined her existence. As Ethan predicted, the T-Infinity had come out of hiding to tidy up loose ends, Cameron being one of them.

"Connor is dead. Skynet will be born in three weeks and nothing can stop this."

"I don't care about Skynet. I only want you."

Cameron stepped towards the T-Infinity, a bolt of lightning illuminating its already surreal appearance.

"We shall fight, you and I. But it will be me who terminates you."

Cameron slowly circled the T-Infinity, clenching her fists in readiness.

"We'll see."

Another crackle of lightning and Cameron launched herself at the machine, who dodged the attack with ethereal agility. Undeterred, Cameron proceeded to launch a series of punches, but all missed their mark as the T-Infinity danced around her, its every movement a blur.

Cameron took a moment to run a tactical analysis and was shocked to discover that this model had the ability to phase through time and space, allowing it to anticipate and dodge her attacks before she even made them. Frustrated, Cameron picked up a heavy rock and hurled it at Infinity, but it side-stepped and launched an attack of its own, sending Cameron flying.

It had struck so fast that she hadn't time to react. Regardless, Cameron got back to her feet and charged her opponent once more, desperately increasing the speed of her attacks, hoping to move too fast for the T-Infinity to react. But it continued to evade her, and delivered another strike that sent a jolt of electricity through her body, searing a few of her circuits.

She would not last long under these circumstances. Her opponent was too advanced and too unorthodox for her to have any hope of defeating it. But then something happened that changed Cameron's perspective. She had picked up a jagged piece of metal and tried to spear the T-Infinity with it, but like before, it evaded.

Cameron then decided to swing the weapon around and try again, but the T-Infinity made to strike her with its glowing hand, so she changed her mind in mid-strike, pulling the weapon up to block the incoming attack instead. As she brought the weapon to bear, its sharp edge scraped the T-infinity whilst it was re-materialising, causing a spark.

Though the T-Infinity suffered no damage, it opened Cameron's mind to a possibility, one which she immediately began constructing a plan upon, even as she was sent flying through the air again. The T-Infinity stalked towards her, its energy fist ready to crush her endo-skull.

Cameron leapt to her feet and drove a punch at the T-Infinity, causing it to phase and shift to her left. But as it did this, Cameron changed the angle of her punch to coincide with the T-Infinity, resulting in it re-materialising around her fist. It took the machine a moment to realise what had happened, granting Cameron time to wrap her fingers around the T-Infinity's power core and violently rip it out of its chest.

The T-Infinity stared at its core with wide eyes and let out a slow moan as its systems suffered a catastrophic failure. Cameron dropped the "heart" at her feet and crushed it beneath her boot. The T-Infinity cried out in apparent dismay, its metallic feminine voice becoming a scream. Cameron looked on with a bitter smile on her lips.

"Welcome to my world, bitch!"

The T-Infinity screamed even louder as its endoskeleton started to fracture and its blue aura became blindingly bright. Cameron watched her enemy die, her eyes glowing blue as she absorbed that feeling of closure. After what seemed like an eternity, the T-Infinity exploded, the blast of which consumed Cameron as well.

Cameron could feel every sensor on her body screaming a thousand reports of data, but she ignored them all and allowed herself to be carried to wherever fate had planned for her.

**Epilogue**

He awoke to the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks.

For a moment, John wondered where he was, then the memories of the previous day returned to him and he smiled. The towel beneath him was warm but the sand remained cool beneath. The sun was warm, but a gentle breeze caressed his body, which led him to guess it was early in the morning. They had slept undisturbed for many hours, it seemed. John reached out to touch Cameron, who he knew to be lying inches away. But his hand closed on her towel and nothing else.

"Cam?"

A sudden bright flash caused John to jerk his eyes open and sit up. He took a moment to adjust to the sun glare before looking down at Cameron's towel, only to find that she wasn't there. He looked around and discovered that he was the only one on the beach, with the exception of a girl who seemed to be floating in the sea. It took him a moment before he realised that the girl was floating upside down and that she had brown hair.

_Cameron?_

John leapt to his feet and raced into the sea, quickly swimming towards Cameron as she began sinking into the depths. By the time he reached her, she had already submerged and was lying on the seabed. John took a deep breath and dived to the bottom, where she lay naked, and apparently asleep. He wrapped his arms around her and kicked off from a rock, using the momentum to struggle to the surface.

It took longer than he would like, and by the time his head broke the surface, John was gasping for breath. With more than a little difficulty, John brought her to the beach and dragged her onto her towel. He collapsed beside her, exhausted with the effort of carrying her all that way. As John recovered from his exertion, Cameron twitched slightly, her eyes moving beneath their lids.

_Rebooting…_

_00101100100111011010110010011100_

_11010011011000100101001101100011_

_00101100100111011010110010011100_

_11010011011000100101001101100011_

_All systems fully functioning; emergency time displacement successful. _

Cameron found that bit of information puzzling, which only added to her annoyance that she was not dead. It seemed her suffering was not yet over, that she had been sent to yet another time to suffer different horrors. Yet, there was something comfortingly familiar about her current location.

"Hey, you awake?"

_Analysing… 99.7 voice match confirmed: John Connor._

Cameron's eyes snapped open to see John looking down at her, a frown on his face. At first she thought her memory archives were simply playing back an old recording, but a quick check of her systems countered this theory. John gave her a sharp tap on the forehead, which served to provide physical proof of what she was seeing.

"Would you mind telling me why I just had to save you from rusting at the bottom of the ocean?"

She could hear him speaking, but she knew it couldn't be true, it was impossible. But once again her systems cast aside her doubt by providing the current date: August 12th 2008.

"What's wrong? You got seaweed stuck in your ears or something?"

John smiled and playfully tickled her ears, causing Cameron to involuntarily giggle. Then she realised; the T-Infinity's destruction had caused a feedback that sent her hurtling across time, back to this moment. And because of its paradoxical nature, all that the T-Infinity changed will be forever forgotten, as if none of it ever happened. But it did happen, to Cameron.

She could still remember the heart-breaking horror of having to watch John die, and it brought tears to her eyes. John looked on with concern and gently ran his hand over her face, brushing aside the droplets.

"Hey, what is it? Cameron? What's the matter?"

She just stared up at him, her eyes searching his face, committing his features to memory. Cameron couldn't believe that, after all of her suffering, she was granted the very thing she thought she'd lost.

"John!"

Cameron launched herself at John and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly, not willing to ever let go. John was startled by her behaviour, but gave her a comforting squeeze and kissed her on the neck.

"I'm here… but not for long if you keep squeezing the life out of me."

Cameron suddenly let go for fear of smothering him to death and instead pulled John into a passionate kiss that lasted for what seemed like an eternity. John was baffled by her strange behaviour, and could only wonder what was going on in her chip.

"Wow, your acting like you haven't seen me in years, what's up?"

Cameron was on the verge of telling him everything, but then she decided he'd be better off not knowing. She just beamed at him, tears of joy now welling in her eyes as she stroked his hair and gave him a tender kiss.

"It's nothing, I just… just a bad dream."

"That must've been one hell of a nightmare then."

They kissed again and Cameron buried her face in his shoulder, holding him close as pure bliss swept through her body, erasing all memory of 2011. John caressed her strands and wondered how he could be so lucky as to have found such a unique soul. But then, unbidden, a question popped up in his mind.

"Err, Cameron?"

"Hmm?"

"Not that I'm complaining or anything, but where are your clothes?"

Cameron laughed before leaning back onto the towel and gazing up into John's eyes. They lay there, silently watching each other, neither wanting to blink and lose sight of the other for a second. Cameron felt completely content, having finally made peace with the world. But there was one thing she needed to say; something Cameron felt she needed to express before another calamity befell them.

"I love you, John."

"I love you too, Cam."

Having never been separated from Cameron in the first place, John never saw the need to turn his vengeful eyes towards Ellison and all of the chaos that came about as a result never occurred. In fact, through Derek, Ellison would become a powerful ally one day, and would be held amongst those that John held in high regard.

John would never lose his mother in that hopeless gunfight, Ethan would have no need to blow himself up, and the world would carry on as it always did, until the inevitable Judgment Day. But even that would be less daunting, as John would never be alone during his struggles. Cameron would always be there to protect him, to aid him, and to love him.

For that was her purpose, her only desire. Cameron would stay with John up to the very end, and then she too would fade away, her soul joining his in that everlasting twilight.

Here endeth the Cameron Trilogy


End file.
